Conservation: Earth hour observed at school campuses

12 institutions join the WWF Green School Programme.

LAHORE:

Students from 12 City School campuses observed Earth Hour at the Shalimar Campus on Monday.

As many as 500 students joined pop singer Faakhir Mehmood in celebrating the fourth annual Earth Hour day organised by WWF Pakistan.

Shalimar Campus and Gulberg Campusalso joined the WWF Pakistan’s Green School Programme. “Earth Hour is a great movement to create environmental awareness and involve students in meaningful global activity. The educators’ community fully supports it,” said Principal Sajid Hasnain.

Students lit candles and switched off electric devices for an hour. They were taught methods of domestic water conservation, planting trees and issues related to sustainable urban development.

A WWF official told The Express Tribune that Faakhir Mehmood had been assigned the Earth Hour ambassador this year because he often visited schools and educated children about conservation. Faakhir had also boycotted the use of plastic polythene bags and always carried his own bag to grocery stores, the official said.

Celebrities including cricketer Wasim Akram, actors Atiqa Odho and Reema Khan and model Iman Ali had been former Earth Hour ambassadors.

Another event to be celebrated at Qarshi University, in connection with the World Earth Hour, would be attended by actors Ayesha Omar and Mikael, who have also been assigned as ambassadors this year. Similar activities would be organised in schools that are part of the green programme.

“Individual acts of conservation will save our Earth,” said Faakhir.

WWF Senior Director Anwar Nasim said Earth Hour was about more than just switching off extra lights, “It is about voluntary actions every day that support conservation and environmental sustainability.”

Published in The Express Tribune, March 19^th, 2013.