In March, millions of people will switch their lights off as part of Earth Hour 2025. For 60 minutes, darkness will spread across the globe.
Previous Earth Hours have seen landmarks like the London Eye and Sydney Opera House switch off and turn the world’s city skylines dark. For this hour, millions stop and take notice of the climate emergency.
What is Earth Hour?
Earth Hour is an annual campaign from WWF to draw attention to the climate emergency. It gives governments and decision makers around the world an unmissable reminder of the need to act to protect our planet.
The first Earth Hour was in Sydney, Australia in 2007. Since then, over 190 countries and territories have taken part. 2024 saw the biggest Earth Hour yet, with 1.4 million hours given to the Hour Bank.
When is Earth Hour 2025?
Earth Hour 2025 is on Saturday, 22 March at 8.30pm (local time). It lasts until 9.30pm.
Add the event to your calendar so you don’t miss out:
Anyone can take part in Earth Hour 2025 and you don’t need to sign up or register. All you need to do is switch off any non-essential lights for 60 minutes.
Switching your lights off has the added benefit of lowering your electricity use. You could save around £8 a year in Great Britain (GB) and £9 in Northern Ireland (NI) by switching lights off when you leave the room.
Six things you can do during Earth Hour 2025
You don’t have to sit in the dark for an hour. Put the time to good use with one of these activities:
If several houses on your street take part in Earth Hour, there’ll be less light pollution. With a clearer night sky, you should be able to see a lot more stars. Download a stargazing app and spend the hour checking out the cosmos.
Take this time to do some mindful activities by candlelight. For example, you could read a book or play a board game with the family.
Going dark doesn’t mean you can’t use your devices. In fact, you could chat with others taking part in Earth Hour on social media and help further raise awareness of the movement. This year Earth Hour encourages people to use the hashtag #BiggestHourForEarth.
Earth Hour is all about protecting the natural world, so why not immerse yourself in nature? Walking and wheeling are one of the best methods of active travel. They help to:
improve your physical and mental health
lower carbon emissions from transport
save money on fuel
Why not take this opportunity to think about how you can lower your electricity use after Earth Hour is over?
While you’re at it, it would be a good time to unplug all the devices that are on standby. This is one of the easiest ways to lower your electricity bills, saving you £45 in GB and £55 in NI a year. The darkness of Earth Hour should help you spot those telltale red standby lights.
What has Earth Hour achieved?
As well as encouraging people to switch off their lights, Earth Hour has made a real difference across the globe, including:
Establishing a 2,700-hectare protected forest in Uganda.
Supporting a Senate bill for 3.4 million hectares of protected marine area in Argentina.
Installing solar-powered lights in three villages without electricity in India.
Launching education programmes for schools in Thailand and Taiwan.
Recognising the support of 250,000 people in Russia for better protection of its seas and forests.
Building public support in Paraguay to extend a logging moratorium, helping reduce deforestation.
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