Phoenix Foundation sound support for Earth Hour

Media release

Tuesday 11 March 2008

The Phoenix Foundation sound their support for Earth Hour

They'll be opening for Split Enz during Earth Hour on Saturday 29 March, but everyone's favourite Wellington-based psychedelic-influenced indie rock band The Phoenix Foundation say they will still be celebrating Earth Hour - in spirit.

"We might do a couple of songs with the PA and all the lights turned off - maybe a couple of megaphones and acoustic guitars," mused Phoenix drummer Richie Singleton, in an interview with The Press.

The Phoenix Foundation have become New Zealand's first band to sound their support for Earth Hour, the global climate change event which will see the lights of Christchurch go out for one hour on 29 March at 8pm.

Earth Hour is a WWF-led initiative, which shows that together, small actions - like switching off a light - add up to a big difference in the fight against climate change. Earth Hour is a global movement which will see people in 24 cities around the world switching out their lights and turning off their appliances from standby for one hour on Saturday 29 March at 8pm. City lights and iconic buildings in Christchurch, Sydney, Bangkok, San Francisco and other forward thinking cities will be plunged into darkness as their citizens take a stand on climate change.

The Phoenix's Richie Singleton, who also works for the Sustainability Trust based in Wellington, backed the global movement for action on climate change, saying: "A lot of people in New Zealand think our energy is quite green when it's not and Earth Hour is a good way to get that knowledge out there, get people thinking about it all.

"Earth Hour draws attention to the fact that 34 per cent of New Zealand's electricity is generated by burning fossil fuels. We can actually make a significant reduction to our carbon emissions by making our homes and businesses more energy efficient and by simply switching things off at the wall."

"Stand-by power consumes around 10 per cent of an average household's electricity, and most of it goes on small appliances like DVD players. Over the course of a year a DVD player can use more electricity sitting in stand-by mode than it will actually playing DVDs," says Singleton.

Orion New Zealand will monitor the power use in Christchurch during Earth Hour to measure how much electricity is saved as the city powers-down. Earth Hour asks people and businesses who commit to Earth Hour to aim to reduce their carbon emissions by five per cent over the first year of Earth Hour. To find simple ways you can reduce your carbon emissions and lead a more sustainable life every day, go to www.sustainability.govt.nz.

WWF is encouraging everyone in Christchurch and around New Zealand to get involved and commit to Earth Hour, as Dairne Poole, WWF-New Zealand Climate Change Manager explains: "Earth Hour is a chance for every person who is concerned about climate change to commit to making a difference in their own lives, starting with switching off their lights for Earth Hour. This is a huge global event which shows that what we might feel are small actions - like switching off a light, or turning off our appliances at the wall - add up to a big difference, collectively."

There will be acoustic music events in Christchurch on the night of Earth Hour, along with community-run events around the city.

To find out more, go to www.earthhour.org and register online to commit to turning out your lights for Earth Hour. Sign up to receive news and information about the night's events, along with information on how to cut your carbon emissions and live Earth Hour every day.

For more information on how to lead a sustainable life, go to www.sustainability.govt.nz and take the What's Your Next Step? sustainability challenge.

-ENDS-

About Earth Hour Christchurch Earth Hour Christchurch is a community event, led by WWF and The Press, and supported by Christchurch City Council, Environment Canterbury and Orion, amongst many others who have kindly given their time and energy to making Earth Hour Christchurch possible. It has the backing of ChristChurch Cathedral and the Employers Chamber of Commerce, and is in part funded by the Ministry for the Environment. All people and businesses across New Zealand can take part in Earth Hour by switching off their lights for one hour at 8pm on 29 March 2008. During Earth Hour people and businesses are also invited to turn appliances off standby. You can commit to Earth Hour at www.earthhour.org. Earth Hour Christchurch is a carbon neutral event, thanks to the carboNZero programme (www.carbonzero.co.nz). CarboNZero will measure, manage and mitigate all greenhouse gas emissions for Earth Hour Christchurch, and is proud to support the WWF-led climate change initiative.

About WWF WWF is the world's largest and most experienced independent conservation organization. It has close to five million supporters and a global network active in more than 100 countries. WWF's mission is to stop the degradation of the planet's natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature.

LIST OF CITIES PARTICIPATING IN EARTH HOUR 2008

1. Christchurch, New Zealand 2. Melbourne, Australia 3. Chicago, USA 4. Toronto, Canada 5. Tel Aviv, Israel 6. Copenhagen, Denmark 7. Manila, Philippines 8. Suva, Fiji 9. Aarhus, Denmark 10. Brisbane, Australia 11. Aalborg, Denmark 12. Sydney, Australia 13. Perth, Australia 14. Odense, Denmark 15. Canberra, Australia 16. San Francisco, USA 17. Adelaide, Australia 18. Phoenix, USA 19. Atlanta, USA 20. Bangkok, Thailand 21. Ottawa, Canada 22. Vancouver, Canada 23. Montreal, Canada 24. Dublin, Ireland Media
ENDS

© Scoop Media