When the lights go out... on 22 March at 8.30pm. celebrate Earth Hour

We are about to celebrate the 19th edition of WWF's Earth Hour, the world's largest grassroots environmental movement and a global event involving tens of millions of people and hundreds of cities every year. Poland will participate for the 18th time.

WWF campaign promotes environmental protection - encourages reflection and a review of habits, but also offers hope for a better tomorrow. The symbolic gesture of turning off the lights for 1 hour a year is an expression of concern for the future of our planet.

It is worth remembering that Earth Hour is more than a brief, fleeting moment when cities are plunged into darkness. It is an initiative and a movement that continues to inspire and mobilise people around the world, reminding us of our collective responsibility for the state of the planet and the real impact we can have on its future appearance.

As in previous years, this year also participate in Earth Hour. Our idea of a world without waste and our main objectives of preventing waste and conserving resources are in line with the slogans proclaimed by the initiators of the campaign. As leaders of sustainable development in Poland and throughout Europe, we feel a special responsibility for the fate of our planet. We strive every day to create awareness, educate and inspire action for a more sustainable future. We also encourage our employees, customers and business partners to do the same.

How to join Earth Hour? On Saturday 22 March at 8.30pm your local time, turn off the lights in your home, office or wherever you are. That's all there is to it and that's all there is to it.

This year's Earth Hour in Poland is dedicated to the need to protect biodiversity. In the opinion of WWF Poland, biodiversity is, next to climate change, one of the most important environmental issues.

As part of the Polish edition of Earth Hour signatures are also being collected on a petition to the Prime Minister of the Republic of Poland on the establishment of an EU Natural Resources Restoration Fund. In it, activists demand action on:

• healthy, sustainable ecosystems that provide protection from extreme weather events,
• ensuring people's health security (physical and mental),
• healthy and resilient agriculture,
• the development of ecotourism,
• creating sustainable jobs in areas where environmental degradation has occurred.

As reported by the initiators of Earth Hour, 2024 was the hottest year in the history of our planet and also ended the hottest decade ever measured. The temperature of the seas had never been so high, and gigantic fires, devastating storms and severe droughts caused enormous damage not only to humans, but also to nature. All these phenomena indicate that we are inevitably approaching so-called tipping points, beyond which we will no longer be able to save our planet and we will irretrievably lose unique ecosystems. Environmentalists therefore encourage us to take action now to ensure that we, the people of the Earth, are climate-secure for years to come.

The goal of Earth Hour 2025 is to Breaking last year's record of 1.5 million hours "donated" to the Earth by event participants. WWF encourages people to share their commitment to the planet by dedicating one hour to either play or act in support of the planet. The organisation presents a range of proposals for local and global activities and encourages you to join them right now on 22 March at 20.30 local time.

For a full list of activities and more information about the campaign, see on the Earth Hour website.

Earth Hour is an environmental campaign created by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)whose final takes place at the end of March each year. Its symbol is the lights going out - a simple gesture with which the initiators and participants show their concern for the state of the Earth's environment and climate and emphasise their commitment to nature conservation. The overarching goal of WWF Earth Hour is to care for the Earth by promoting sustainability and respect for nature and the planet's natural resources.

Earth Hour was held for the first time in 2007 in SydneyThe campaign was launched in 2008, when as many as 2.2 million people took part. In subsequent years, the action gained publicity and gradually spread to other countries of the world. Poland joined Earth Hour in 2008. - At that time, already 50 million people worldwide declared their participation in the event. A year later, already 700 cities from 78 countries declared their participation, and in 2010. Earth Hour was hailed as the biggest environmental action in the history of the world.

Over the past 19 editions, Earth Hour has enjoyed steadily increasing popularity - for one hour a year, the lights have been switched off not only at the Sydney Opera House, but also at the Eiffel Tower, the Colosseum, Buckingham Palace, the Golden Gate Bridge, St Mary's Church in Krakow and the Empire State Building.

As the name suggests, the Hour for only lasts an hour and the the associated reduction in energy consumption is significant. Action also has no impact on emissions related to energy production, which is one of the main causes of climate change.

It should be emphasised, however, that it is not just energy consumption that is at stake here - the festivities are symbolic, with cities plunged into darkness to reflect on climate change and the action we can take to slow it down. With a clear action that everyone can see, such as turning off the lights on a March evening, the action also has the potential to reach an increasingly new audience.