China turns the lights off for Earth Hour

Landmarks in China turned off their lights for an hour on Saturday as part of a global effort to raise awareness of threats facing planet Earth.

Five cities – Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen in Guangdong province, Wuhan in Hubei province and Chengdu in Sichuan province – took part in the Earth Hour campaign and held supporting events, including photo exhibitions and eco-fairs.

The theme of this year's campaign, run by the World Wildlife Fund, was "connect to earth", in order to bring attention to protecting global biodiversity.

The Olympic Tower in Beijing switched off its lights, as did the Oriental Pearl Tower in Shanghai, along with other 20 buildings in the Bund.

The Yellow Crane Tower in Wuhan also went dark, as local environmental groups and college students joined the annual bid to highlight conservation.

At the Strawberry Music Festival in Wuhan, a lead singer of a rock band unplugged his electric instrument and performed the traditional Chinese musical instrument guzheng, or Chinese zither, to recognize the campaign.

Lu Lunyan, deputy CEO of WWF China, said that the campaign will guide the public to think and act beyond just 60 minutes.

"We aim to make ecological and environmental protection and the future of mankind into a daily lifestyle, from attention to action, from action to habit, from habit to a culture," she said.

Initiated by the WWF in Sydney in 2007, the event is held annually to encourage individuals, communities, and enterprises to switch off lights for one hour, from 8:30 to 9:30 pm on the last Saturday of March, as a commitment to the planet.