At 8:30 p.m. Saturday night, lights were turned off buildings in the City of Austin as part of Earth Hour.
"Turing off the lights in and of itself doesn't do a lot, but it makes a statement," said Austin Resident Mike Thomas. “The big thing is to raise awareness.”
2011 marks the fifth year of cutting power for Earth Hour. Millions of people from more than 100 countries were expected to participate in the global blackout.
More than 100 Austinites turned out on the Pflugerville Bridge. They joined the rest of the world in darkness and held candles to protest climate change around the world.
“It's a way to think about climate change and what are the simple things we can do to reduce our energy use that contribute to pollution and create problems related to climate change,” said Kevin Tuerff President EnviroMedia.
Organizers hope by turning off our lights, we can all make a difference and draw attention to the dangers of climate change.
“The problems we have with climate change and pollution from the use of electricity are caused by the little things we do, so this is symbolic by the fact the little things we undo, we can make a positive difference,” explained Karl Rabago VP, Distributed Energy Services at Austin Energy.
Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia.
