READING 1 C1
Earth Hour
A t eight-thirty on Saturday, March 29th, in millions of
homes, businesses and cities throughout the world,
the lights will go out. Brightly lit city centres will plunge
into darkness and illuminated national landmarks, such as
the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Great Pyramids of Giza in
Cairo, will black out. This will be Earth Hour, one single hour
dedicated to our struggling planet from the eight thousand,
seven hundred and sixty-five that we have annually at our
disposal. If, like me, you had only the vaguest of notions
of what this global event was all about, read on. It may be
more significant than you think. Earth Hour is not just one
symbolic hour its a global movement and, with the help of
social media, its gathering pace.
Organised by the charity, the World Wide Fund for Nature,
(WWF), Earth Hour was launched on March 31st, 2007
in Sydney, Australia, where 2.2 million people and 2,100
businesses were persuaded to switch off non-essential lights
and electrical devices for an hour as a symbolic gesture of their
concern over climate change. Since that evening, Earth Hour
has gone from strength to strength, evolving into a worldwide
event in which over 162 countries and 7,000 cities take part.
But as dramatic as the lights-off hour undoubtedly is (on the
last Saturday in March every year), this global initiative is no
longer simply about the hour, and no longer solely focused
on climate change. In 2011, Earth Hour urged people to go
beyond the hour by committing to permanent changes in
behaviour that would have a range of lasting benefits for our
planet. These changes address a whole raft of issues that,
broadly, speaking come under the umbrella of environmental
sustainability. Beyond the hour initiatives brought about as
a result of Earth Hour 2014 included the following:
In Australia, on the day of Earth Hour, a documentary
on the plight of the iconic Great Barrier Reef called Lights
Out for the Reef was aired on national television. (A deadly
combination of climate change and human activity is
taking its toll on Australias astonishing reefs and they are
now in great peril.)
In India, the hour ushered in a year-long project involving
15,000 schools across the country to educate children on
the importance of energy efficiency.
In Iran, the people of Isfahan fashioned a huge, 2800 square
metre Earth Hour logo in the now dried-out mud of the
Zayanderud River bed. (The Zayanderud, the largest river
in the central plateau of Iran, has ceased flowing in recent
years, partly as a result of climatic changes in the region.)
In China, the focus was on Blue sky and the pressing need
for better air quality. People were asked to submit their
ideas for reducing air pollution and smog.
WWFRussia launched a campaign to raise awareness of
critically endangered animals in the region.
Clearly, Earth Hour is working. An initiative that was initially
conceived as a means of raising environmental awareness is
now bringing about tangible benefits for our planet.
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 READING 1 C1

1 Read the newspaper article quickly. What is it about? Choose the correct answer.
A a project to raise awareness of climate change
B a campaign to raise awareness of environmental issues generally
C an hour of one day that is annually given over to celebrating the beauty of our
planet

2 Read the article again and choose the best summary (AC).
A a description of the first Earth Hour and Earth Hours subsequent transformation
from an annual event into a concerted movement, followed by a list of initiatives
demonstrating peoples concern for the planet a
B a description of the first Earth Hour, followed by an analysis of the effectiveness
of the campaign as a whole, giving examples of successes and failures c
C a description of the first Earth Hour and a description of all the activities
performed the world over to demonstrate the various nations concern over
climate change b

3 Are these sentences true or false?

1 The author used to be fairly ignorant about Earth Hour. FALSE
2 The author is still not entirely sure what Earth Hour stands for even after
researching it. FALSE
3 According to the author, the campaign is gaining momentum. TRUE
4 The focus of the global campaign is still mainly on the hour itself FALSE
5 Climate change is the sole cause of the destruction of the Great Barrier Reef.
FALSE
6 The activities in the various countries mentioned demonstrate a range of
concerns, from air pollution to animal extinction and energy use. TRUE
7 Climate change is partially to blame for the Zayanderud River catastrophe.
TRUE
8 The author is broadly sceptical about the usefulness of Earth Hour.
FALSE

4 Match these verbs from the article to their definitions (16).

address air commit conceive evolve urge

1 to try hard to persuade someone to do something urge

2 to make a promise to do something commint
3 to broadcast a TV or radio programme air
4 to gradually change into something evolve
5 to imagine or think of something in a particular way conceive
6 to try to deal with a particular problem address

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