[PRESS RELEASE] NDFD will today lead observance of Earth Hour in Dominica for 3rd consecutive year

Ahead of the 25th March 2023 at 8.30pm local time, WWF’s Earth Hour is calling on individuals, communities, and businesses across the world to switch off their lights and Give an Hour for Earth, spending 60 minutes doing something positive for our planet.

As landmarks and homes across the planet take part in Earth Hour’s iconic switch off moment, people around the globe will be ‘switching off’ themselves by taking a break from their routine and everyday distractions, before deciding what they themselves can do to restore our one home. Whether that’s by cleaning up the beach, planting trees, cooking dinner with sustainable ingredients, or getting friends together for an Earth Hour event, anyone, anywhere is invited to join the Biggest Hour For Earth.

Supporters in over 190 countries including Dominica and other territories will thereby create the Biggest Hour for Earth, part of WWF’s efforts to turn a single Earth Hour into thousands and millions of hours of action and awareness.  In doing so, the world’s largest grassroots environmental campaign will shine an unmissable global spotlight on the twin perils of nature loss and climate change. At the same time, this year’s Earth Hour will also serve as a powerful reminder of the importance of our planet, the need to protect it, and how little time we have to do so.

Earth Hour 2023 comes hot on the heels of the historic Kunming-Montreal Agreement at COP15, which in December last year committed the world to halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030. The next seven years are therefore crucial, for ensuring that the decade ends with more nature and biodiversity than when it began, not less, and that we stay under the 1.5°C climate threshold needed to avoid irreversible damage to our planet. Earth Hour is therefore needed more than ever, to inspire millions more to act, and make millions more take notice.

Already countries across the world are gearing up for this year’s Earth Hour 2023, with hundreds of local celebrity influencers set to show their support for ‘The Biggest Hour’, alongside a number of events set to take place on the 25th March. WWF-Mongolia will this year host a sustainable fashion show that is set to take place with local fashion designers, featuring upcycled redesigned clothes. Meanwhile, WWF-Latvia will once again host its traditional Earth Hour concert alongside several nature hikes with its partners and supporters.

The Earth Hour observation on island will again be led by the National Development Foundation of Dominica (NDFD) for the third time since the NDFD initiated the local participation in 2021. The NDFD will host a hybrid panel discussion starting from 7.00pm with the theme, “Environmentally Conscious Solutions for Small Businesses in Dominica”, with experts in six (6) thematic areas namely: Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency, Waste Management, Recycling, Water Management, and Sustainable Agriculture joining the discussion. Interested individuals can attend the panel discussion at the NDFD’s Conference Room after reserving their slots. They can also opt to view it via the Social Media pages of the NDFD. From 8.30pm, the NDFD will open the virtual discussion to any person or organization which would like to zoom in and show to the public what specific environmentally friendly activities they decided to do during Earth Hour.  Meeting details can be found in the NDFD’s social media pages.

The local observation of Earth Hour and the Panel Discussion that will precede it are just two of several promotional and educational fringe events which the NDFD has been organizing that lead up to the Green Innovations Summit this June.

Dr Kirsten Schuijt, Director General, WWF International: “Earth Hour is a fantastic celebration of people, planet and nature, and this year we want as many people as possible to feel inspired and empowered to play a part, no matter how small. By “switching off” your lights or switching off from daily habits and distractions and doing something positive for the planet, we can turn a single Earth Hour into thousands and millions of hours of action, making this the Biggest Hour for Earth yet. Together, through one incredible moment of global unity, let’s ensure that 2023 is a year of change in order to reach our 2030 nature positive goal.”

The changing face of Earth Hour

Since 2007 Earth Hour has shone a spotlight on the issues of climate change and nature loss having reached over 190 countries and territories and millions of people around the globe. Earth Hour has featured many of the world’s most iconic landmarks switching off their lights, from the London Eye in England to the Eiffel Tower in France and the 2,000-year-old Colosseum in Italy. It has also united millions around the world to push for change and inspired global initiatives since it first started.

Now in its 17th year, having been known for the “lights off” moment – a symbolic event to show our collective support for the planet – WWF is this year stepping things up, by breathing new life into the Earth Hour movement and mission. That’s why Earth Hour has renewed its identity, thereby revitalising the power of the hour for a nature-positive world. With our 2030 goal getting closer, we’re evolving the branding, with a new sense of purpose – and urgency. Central to Earth Hour 2023’s identity is a series of exciting digital content, and a new flip clock logo that brings focus to the hour and the fact that time is ticking.