Millions of people in 30 locations in Vietnam will join the world celebration of Earth Hour on the evening of March 26.

“Earth Hour” captured by Dzung Nguyen_E.Fiat_A.Vapa

Hanoi\'s Hoan Kiem Lake during last year Earth Hour, by Bui Hoang Hai

A meeting for the event will be held in central Hue city on March 26, with the participation of leaders from different ministries and agencies as well as a large number of citizens.

Other locations that will join in will include Hanoi, Haiphong, Hoi An, Danang, Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho, in addition to many others across the country.

Lights will be turned off at local people’s committees, high-rise buildings, cultural centres and other public locations in order encourage people to save energy and reduce their carbon emissions.

Tran Minh Hien, Director of World Wide Fund for Nature in Vietnam (WWF), said that Earth Hour has been commemorated in the Southeast Asian country for three years.

This year will include more individuals organisations and businesses than last year. Around 4,600 organisations and businesses alone have already registered to participate, she said.

“If everyone becomes more environmentally responsible in the next year, I believe we can help to reduce the scale of the disasters that have been arising from climate change,” she said.

WWF Vietnam has opened a forum at www.beyondthehour.org in eleven languages, including Vietnamese, for individuals and organizations to share their ideas and activities in reducing their ecological footprint.

WWF Vietnam said that Danang is seeking to be the organiser of the event in Vietnam in 2012.

In 2009 and 2010, Vietnam Earth Hour was held in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh, respectively.

Earth Hour 2010 saved 500,000 kWh of electricity, simply by switching off lights, in Vietnam alone.

The first Earth Hour was held in Sydney, Australia in 2007, and has grown since then to be observed in cities around the globe.