It was the night the lights went in Georgia. As Atlanta gave Earth Hour a big Southern welcome, the city's skyline slowly dimmed, turning previous-shinning beacons into symbols for a greater cause.
Leading up to the hour, Atlanta dignitaries and WWF officials began the evening with an event featuring an eco-friendly "green carpet" and WWF's mascot, Pandy. As guests arrived, the local media captured the excitement as the crowd anxiously waited for the big moment to arrive.
Local NBC affiliate WXIA-TV broadcast live from WWF's official viewing party. The anchors spoke of the significance of the event and introduced the folks who made the event a reality, despite overcoming numerous challenges. After a moving speech by co-chair Mark Pettit, he introduced World Wildlife Fund US President and CEO Carter Roberts who spoke about the genesis of the event and of all the exciting things happening around the world.
One of the most dramatic highlights of the evening was when Mayor Shirley Franklin and World Wildlife Fund US President and CEO Mr. Roberts brought gasps of amazement from more than 300 people gathering on the 21st floor of the Wachovia Builiding in the heart of Midtown Atlanta as the two of them joined together to pull down a giant light switch, symbolically turning off the lights, and turning on a new sense of possibilities for the city. Earth Hour had officially begun.
Throughout the city, landmarks, famous structures and simple gatherings of friends celebrated Earth Hour in their own unique way on a night that made history.
For the next hour, the Atlanta residents gazed at the skyline and watched the city shrouded in darkness continue to breath, as vibrant as ever. Over 400 buildings in Atlanta participated, including the Bank of America Plaza (the tallest building in the Southeast), the World of Coke, CNN Center, and the Georgia State Capitol Building.
As the hour came to a close, Atlanta's skyline slowly re-emerged, revealing a proud city that showed to the world that by coming together for a common cause, it can shine brighter than any light.
Earth Hour Live
Tonight, millions of people are joining together, and turning off their lights to help make a difference and raise awareness about the issue of global warming. See how the world is taking part, with these live news feeds and images from participating cities. Don't forget to share your Earth Hour moments too. Remember - turn off your lights!
Showing posts with label atlanta. Show all posts
Showing posts with label atlanta. Show all posts
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Hot-lanta buzzing with energy
Hot-lanta is buzzing with energy and it seems like everybody's talking about Earth Hour. Some are even calling it the olympics for the environment. Despite a powerful tornado that ripped through the city two weeks ago, nothing can deter the resolve of the citizens of this great flagship city. As a sign of the will people have to continue their mission of sustainability and raising awareness, the tallest hotel in the western hemisphere, the Westin Peachtree Plaza who, even though nearly half of its windows were blown out by the tornado, it is still turning off its lights tonight.
Signs of Atlanta's commitment to Earth Hour and climate change are everywhere. As you drive around and take in the gorgeous architecture and admire the abundant growth, every where you go the city is spotted with Earth Hour billboards, posters, t-shirts and lapel pins. Next to the HUGE - and I mean HUGE - Earth Hour banner that adorns City Hall are flyers detailing the movement in Chipotle which is supporting the cause by dimming the lights in all 12 of their Atlanta locations. Down the street from Chipotle is the Turner broadcasting campus who is turning out their lights as well as supporting EH on their network, CNN.
Kids of all ages are excited about Earth Hour. Just earlier, while walking past a park, one of the youngsters playing soccer stopped, saw my Earth Hour t-shirt and said "that's cool" because his teacher had been talking about it in school. Last night, while riding on MARTA, Atlanta's mass transit system I saw an Earth Hour digital message while waiting for the train. Those messages are everywhere. They adorn the Fabulous Fox Theatre, the Atlanta Civic Center, Georgia Tech's digital billboard and the massive billboards you see as you drive to and from the airport.
Yesterday was a whirlwind of Earth Hour activity. There was PANDAmonium at the pep-rally held at City Hall. Prizes were handed out, speeches were made and Pandy, WWF's panda mascot, made a special appearance leading a conga line with city employees. The local affiliates were there to cover the action but unfortunately Pandy was having too much fun to comment on the record.
Today, WWF President Carter Roberts arrived to celebrate Earth Hour in the city he spent his youth. After touching down this morning he was soon eating chili dogs at iconic eatery The Varsity - another Earth Hour participant. Later he toured the world's largest aquarium, the Georgia Aquarium, and saw whale sharks and beluga whales -- species we hope to protect by raising awareness and taking action on climate change. Carter has also been active taking to the airwaves with extensive media interviews to further spread the word about Earth Hour. We are encouraged by the warm welcome he received at places like CNN and the local NBC affiliate WXIA - who is doing an hour-long special tonight on the Earth Hour activities in town.
Now, less than a few short hours away from Earth Hour we are experiencing the calm before the storm. We are electric with anticipation for the night the lights go out in Georgia.
Signs of Atlanta's commitment to Earth Hour and climate change are everywhere. As you drive around and take in the gorgeous architecture and admire the abundant growth, every where you go the city is spotted with Earth Hour billboards, posters, t-shirts and lapel pins. Next to the HUGE - and I mean HUGE - Earth Hour banner that adorns City Hall are flyers detailing the movement in Chipotle which is supporting the cause by dimming the lights in all 12 of their Atlanta locations. Down the street from Chipotle is the Turner broadcasting campus who is turning out their lights as well as supporting EH on their network, CNN.
Kids of all ages are excited about Earth Hour. Just earlier, while walking past a park, one of the youngsters playing soccer stopped, saw my Earth Hour t-shirt and said "that's cool" because his teacher had been talking about it in school. Last night, while riding on MARTA, Atlanta's mass transit system I saw an Earth Hour digital message while waiting for the train. Those messages are everywhere. They adorn the Fabulous Fox Theatre, the Atlanta Civic Center, Georgia Tech's digital billboard and the massive billboards you see as you drive to and from the airport.
Yesterday was a whirlwind of Earth Hour activity. There was PANDAmonium at the pep-rally held at City Hall. Prizes were handed out, speeches were made and Pandy, WWF's panda mascot, made a special appearance leading a conga line with city employees. The local affiliates were there to cover the action but unfortunately Pandy was having too much fun to comment on the record.
Today, WWF President Carter Roberts arrived to celebrate Earth Hour in the city he spent his youth. After touching down this morning he was soon eating chili dogs at iconic eatery The Varsity - another Earth Hour participant. Later he toured the world's largest aquarium, the Georgia Aquarium, and saw whale sharks and beluga whales -- species we hope to protect by raising awareness and taking action on climate change. Carter has also been active taking to the airwaves with extensive media interviews to further spread the word about Earth Hour. We are encouraged by the warm welcome he received at places like CNN and the local NBC affiliate WXIA - who is doing an hour-long special tonight on the Earth Hour activities in town.
Now, less than a few short hours away from Earth Hour we are experiencing the calm before the storm. We are electric with anticipation for the night the lights go out in Georgia.
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