Swiss locations to join Saturday lights out for biodiversity

Geneva's Jet d'Eau is among the monuments that will turn its lights off at 8.30pm. © Keystone / Salvatore Di Nolfi

Some 20 locations in Switzerland are joining an international "Earth Hour" initiative on Saturday evening, with lights going out for an hour in a gesture for nature.

The aim is to “give a clear signal in favour of protecting our Earth”, says the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), which has launched this global initiative.

In Switzerland, Geneva’s landmark Jet d’Eau and the Wizards’ Tower in Sion are among the monuments that will turn their lights off for an hour at 8.30pm Swiss time. The city of St. Gallen in northeast Switzerland is going a step further and organising a whole weekend around the Earth Hour theme of biodiversity.

Around the world, famous monuments such as the Empire State Building in New York and the Taj Mahal in India will remain in darkness. However, Russia will not participate in this operation, accusing the WWF of being a “foreign agent”.

“The fact that so many cities and people are taking part in Earth Hour shows how much the public wants to protect nature,” said Thomas Vellacott, Director General of WWF Switzerland. “With Earth Hour, we are sending a signal to decision-makers in Switzerland and around the world that it is high time to acknowledge the IPCC [Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] findings and act accordingly.”

The IPCC published its sixth synthesis report on Monday, which “clearly shows the urgency of the situation”, says WWF. “We must act without delay to combat the climate crisis and halt the loss of biodiversity.”