GLOBAL – If you only had one hour to save the planet, what would you do? Well you could start by turning the light off. This year people in more than one hundred countries, on every continent, will be taking part in Earth Hour – and Nokia is too.

 

Earth Hour was founded by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in 2007 as a symbolic way of raising awareness about climate change and the world’s depleting resources. The movement spread by encouraging everyone to turn their non-essential lighting off for an hour on the same date.   

 

In its first year more than two million took part in Earth Hour in Sydney, Australia. Last year, in 2011, an estimated 1.8 billion people took part in more than five thousand cities and towns around the globe – including a ‘lights out’ at the Forbidden City in Beijing, the Eiffel Tower, Table Mountain in Cape Town and San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge. 

 

But turning the light off is only a start, and saving the world takes more than symbolism. Earth Hour Executive Director and Co-Founder Andy Ridley said:

 

“Earth Hour’s challenge is no longer to connect people; the challenge is to offer a reason to connect. Earth Hour is past the beginning now, and lots of people are switching their lights off every year in March. We’re now at the stage of taking it beyond the hour.”

 

Nokia will be joining Earth Hour by switching off lights at main offices around the world at 8:30pm on Saturday 31 March. But Nokia’s commitment to sustainability goes way beyond symbolic gestures of support –   

 

Nokia has a long-standing commitment to sustainability, and the company has implemented a rigorous climate strategy since 2006.

 

That plan looks at the energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions related to Nokia products and operations, and sets targets for reductions in these areas.

 

Nokia has always put sustainability at the heart of company policy. For example, the greenhouse gas footprint of Nokia phones has decreased by up to 50% between 2000 and 2010. And Nokia has made a big impact in other ways too – leading the way in introducing renewable materials, energy efficient chargers, smaller packaging, and better systems of transport – which are all key factors in reducing environmental impact.

 

If you think of it another way, every Nokia has true multi-purpose functions, with a great camera, internet browsing and music. So you only need to buy, and charge, one device – not four or five.   

 

So by all means join with millions of other people in making one small gesture of support on Saturday night – and turn the lights off. But think about how you can go above and beyond the expected too.