DASMARIŇAS CITY, Cavite – Hundreds of spectators in Cavite were enthralled as a huge kite operated by light emission diode (LED) soared the skies at the countdown of the 11th “Earth Hour” at the SM City mall here and local government units (LGUs) across the country on Saturday evening.
Patrick Ballesteros, SM City Mall Dasmarinas assistant manager, said this year’s celebration calls for engagement of all peoples across nations to "connect to earth" and move collectively against climate change and the steep decline of nature, as biodiversity loss threatens the planet.
Ballesteros added that the "Earth Hour” should not just be a one -time, big-time, once a year event but it should be every hour, everyday.
The SM City Mall here has joined the annual “Earth Hour” through a kite-making workshop for children and adults and the night kite-flying using the LED in this Cavite skyline.
At the SM city mall grounds, a stage was set up with the backdrop "Light up the Night" Earth Hour 2018 where a huge screen showed video streams of the Earth Hour observance in other countries, spiced up by an upbeat music.
A disk jockey signaled the countdown and at exactly 8:30 p.m. the mall and surrounding areas were plunged into darkness until 9:30 p.m.
Then the big kite, powered by LED colorful lights, was flown into the air as hundreds of mallers, shoppers, mall workers and the public watched with delight.
Ballesteros said all 68 SM malls joined the nationwide observance with various events highlighting the call for everybody’s participation and concern to address global climate change.
The yearly mall event is an initiative that sparks consciousness and creates awareness of the public in taking responsibility towards a sustainable future by a reduction of carbon emissions to the atmosphere and switching off the lights whether in commercial establishments and in the households for even an hour.
Other Cavite malls, schools, business establishments and even jeepney drivers and Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) stations here joined in the hour-long lights out event by buzzing their horns and sounding the sirens along the highways. (PNA)
