Phoenix turns off the lights

Wide-eyed onlookers gaze at the skyline from the Summit rooftop in downtown Phoenix, while one-by-one buildings go dark. Bank of America. US Airways Center. APS building. The Arizona Republic. Hyatt Regency…

The giant dome at Chase Field begins to close, while the announcer tells Arizona Diamondback fans inside that they’re honoring Earth Hour by blocking out the stadium lights.

Among the esteemed guests on the rooftop is Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon who sits alongside his young son—playing a tune on the battery-powered piano. A call comes through the transom. The Hard Rock Café will not turn out its giant neon guitar unless someone from the mayor’s office contacts them. Mayor Gordon reaches out his hand for the phone—a few words are spoken. Thirty seconds later the guitar is dark.

Twenty floors below, the city is embracing the movement. Local hot spot, Staudamires, is serving up eco-tinis garnished with glow sticks. Residents are roaming the streets in glow-in-the-dark necklaces and “I’m not afraid of the dark” stickers affixed to their chests—and foreheads. A club blasts Nelly Fertado’s “Turn Off the Light” while Saturday night partiers dance in the dark. Stargazers gather at the Arizona Science Center to take advantage of increased visibility and the telescopes it graciously provided.

In the end, every building marquee on the Phoenix skyline went off. The City of Phoenix made the finale of Earth Hour a night to be remembered. The night that governments, businesses, communities and individuals joined together to make a global statement on climate change and the need for each of us to take action.

Inspired by a common goal, connected through common threat—Phoenix and the entire planet united.

On March 29, 2008, the dark helped the world see the light.