MARCH 27 is the first Saturday when candidates for local positions may officially begin campaigning, but environmentalists hope that on that day, people will “Vote Earth” instead.
Organizers of Earth Hour Philippines hope to convince 15 million people in at least 1,000 cities and towns to switch off their lights for one hour, from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m., on March 27, 2010. It will be the third global celebration of the event, which is intended to “inspire humanity to mitigate and adapt to climate change.”
“More than generating enough energy to meet demand, we need to learn to manage the use of energy. We need change in the way we live our lives,” said Catherine Maceda at the presentation of the Philippine Energy Plan 2009-2030 at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel yesterday.
The global target for Earth Hour 2010 is one billion participants. Last year, the Philippines topped a list of 88 countries in terms of local government participation in Earth Hour, with at least 600 cities and towns joining the event.
In the launching of the Earth Hour at the SM City Cebu, Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes urged people to act swiftly to mitigate the impact of climate change, amid the dry spell hitting parts of the country.
“We have a problem. (The problem) is climate change,” Reyes told members of multi-sectoral groups gathered during the launch. Reyes said a solution is still possible, “all we need is to unite and act.” More than 4,000 cities in 88 countries joined Earth Hour 2009.
Maceda said participants were taught they can help save energy by making some changes in their lifestyles: planting more trees, having occasional candlelight dinners and maintaining their vehicles so these don’t guzzle gas.
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/earth-hour-2010-organizers-rally-15m-participants
Organizers of Earth Hour Philippines hope to convince 15 million people in at least 1,000 cities and towns to switch off their lights for one hour, from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m., on March 27, 2010. It will be the third global celebration of the event, which is intended to “inspire humanity to mitigate and adapt to climate change.”
“More than generating enough energy to meet demand, we need to learn to manage the use of energy. We need change in the way we live our lives,” said Catherine Maceda at the presentation of the Philippine Energy Plan 2009-2030 at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel yesterday.
The global target for Earth Hour 2010 is one billion participants. Last year, the Philippines topped a list of 88 countries in terms of local government participation in Earth Hour, with at least 600 cities and towns joining the event.
In the launching of the Earth Hour at the SM City Cebu, Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes urged people to act swiftly to mitigate the impact of climate change, amid the dry spell hitting parts of the country.
“We have a problem. (The problem) is climate change,” Reyes told members of multi-sectoral groups gathered during the launch. Reyes said a solution is still possible, “all we need is to unite and act.” More than 4,000 cities in 88 countries joined Earth Hour 2009.
Maceda said participants were taught they can help save energy by making some changes in their lifestyles: planting more trees, having occasional candlelight dinners and maintaining their vehicles so these don’t guzzle gas.
http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/earth-hour-2010-organizers-rally-15m-participants
