The AGO will be participating in Earth Hour on Saturday, March 28. Earth Hour is a global lights-out event led by World Wildlife Fund to demonstrate that each of us can help fight climate change. The AGO will be making a concerted effort to turn off or turn down lights wherever possible throughout the building between 8:30 and 9:30 pm.
Interior lights will be turned off or dimmed in Galleria Italia, Granovsky Gluskin Hall, Walker Court and Shop AGO. There will be emergency lighting only in the south tower and Chalmers Wing. Security lighting around the perimeter of the building will be left on. Lights will be left on in the Jackman Hall area for the safety of Cinematheque patrons.
The first earth hour was held on March 31, 2007, when 2.2 million people and 2100 Sydney (Australia) businesses turned off their lights for one hour. This massive collective effort reduced Sydney's energy consumption by 10.2% for one hour, which is the equivalent effect of taking 48,000 cars off the road for a year. For a taste of what is happening globally this year, check out www.earthhour.org.