The University of Texas at Austin will collaborate on global energy and climate change awareness by participating in Earth Hour 2012. This will mark the third year in a row the university has participated.
Earth Hour 2012 will take place Saturday, March 31, beginning at 8:30 p.m. The university will delay lighting the Tower until midnight in support of the event. Members of the university community wishing to participate are urged to turn off all nonessential office lights to raise awareness and support for energy conservation. Participation at home is also encouraged.
Since its inception in 2007, Earth Hour’s nonpartisan approach has captured the world’s imagination and became a worldwide phenomenon. Nearly 1 billion people turned out for Earth Hour 2009 involving 4,100 cities in 87 countries on seven continents.
“While delaying Tower lighting saves only a small amount of energy, the real idea is to demonstrate our commitment to the common goal of energy conservation in Austin and Texas,” said Jim Walker, director of sustainability. “We hope this will energize our university community and the broader Austin community to participate not only in energy conservation but also in water conservation and heading toward zero waste.”
The university’s Office of Sustainability will be raising awareness about campus sustainability efforts throughout the month of April. On April 22, the university is also participating in Earth Day Austin, held at the Mueller redevelopment, and in Earth Day Dallas at Fair Park.
