WASHINGTON - World Wildlife Fund (WWF)
announced today that Earth Hour will be officially observed in all 50
states, uniting the country in the single largest call to action on
climate change in history. 

Non-essential lighting in more than
3,500 cities in 125 countries around the world will be turned off
Saturday, March 27 at 8:30 pm local time. Of that total, 36 countries
will be participating for the first time, 58 nations' capital's,
including Washington, D.C., all of the G20 nations, and seven of the
most populated cities in the world are turning off their lights for
Earth Hour.

In the United States, governors from both sides of the
aisle, mayors, state legislators, government officials, celebrities,
business, religious and community leaders, university presidents,
teachers and individuals are joining together to demonstrate their
commitment to fighting climate change and creating solutions for the
future of the planet. Collectively, they will turn off the lights at
governors' residences and state capitol buildings, iconic landmarks,
businesses, schools and homes, for one hour, Earth Hour.

"Earth
Hour sends a clear message that Americans care about their country and
the planet. By turning the lights off on pollution and climate change,
we will make the switch to a cleaner, safer and more secure world," said
Earth Hour US Managing Director Leslie Aun.

The lights at the
governors' residences and/or state capitol buildings will go dark in 33
states; Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware,
Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland,
Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey,
New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon,
Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West
Virginia and Wisconsin.

More than 45 national and local
monuments and landmarks across the U.S. will be turning off their
lights during Earth Hour including:

• Mount Rushmore in South
  Dakota
• The Las Vegas Strip in Nevada
• Niagara Falls in
  New York
• National Cathedral in Washington D.C.
• Smithsonian
  Castle in Washington D.C.
• Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco
• Space
  Needle in Seattle
• Empire State Building
• Chrysler
  Building
• Queen Mary Hotel in Los Angeles
• The Pylons at
  L.A. International Airport
• Santa Monica Pier
• St. Louis
  Gateway Arch
• The United Nations Building in New York
• Soldiers
  and Sailors Monument in Indianapolis
• Duluth Aerial Bridge in
  Minnesota
• Anchorage 5th Avenue Mall in Alaska
• Montezuma
  Castle in Arizona
• The Wrangler in Cheyenne, Wyoming
• Milwaukee
  Public Market in Wisconsin
• Chase Tower in Dallas
• The
  National Aquarium in Baltimore
• Sears/Willis Tower in Chicago

More
than 150 cities, towns and counties will dim the lights at buildings in
their municipalities including; Ann Arbor, Atlanta, Austin,
Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Honolulu,
Houston, Huntsville, Las Vegas, Miami, Minneapolis, Orlando,
Philadelphia, San Francisco, Sioux Falls, Spokane, St. Louis, and Winston-Salem.
In each of these cities individuals, businesses and organizations are
participating in activities to engage, enlighten and spread the Earth
Hour message. 

Some examples of how Earth Hour is being celebrated
in select cities include:

New York City Estee Lauder
employees are asked to turn off lights and computers today, before the
start of the weekend.  The Grand Hyatt's (near Grand Central) analog
clock will countdown to Earth Hour starting 24 hours in advance.  The
Great White Way is also on board for the great blackout, with all
Broadway theatres participating by turning off roof and marquee lights
for Earth Hour. 

Los Angeles Earth Hour dining will be
in full swing at restaurants in the area including Euphoria Loves Rawvolution,
Lago's and Ocean & Vine's.
Additionally the outside, decorative lighting will be turned off at
downtown LA's AEG Live including the Staples Center.

Chicago In
Chicago, where ComEd is a presenting sponsor, nearly 200 downtown
buildings will dim non-essential lighting for one hour, including Willis
Tower, Merchandise Mart and the Wrigley Building. The City of Chicago
will be turning off the exterior lights at City Hall, the Cultural
Center and the Chicago Police Department Headquarters. Additionally,
dozens of Chicagoland restaurants and hotels are serving dinners by
candlelight including: Cyrano's Bistrot, Bistro Bordeaux, Harry Caray's,
Osteria Via Stato, Red Kiva, Nacional 27, Duke's Alehouse, and Kitchen,
C-View Restaurant, Swissotel Chicago and the Conrad Chicago Hotel.

Baltimore The
University of Maryland has brought March Madness fever off the court,
joining as an official participating school for Earth Hour. The Inner
Harbor will be noticeably darker with the National Aquarium, USS
Constellation/Historic Ships in Baltimore, and Domino Sugar and Rusty
Scupper signs dimming their lights in observance. City Hall will also go
dark.

St. Louis Whole Foods Galleria will be turning
off the lights in the café for dinners by candlelight with a performance
by local musician Monica Case.  The famous St. Louis Gateway Arch will
also go dark for Earth Hour. 

Washington, DC A multitude
of hotels including the Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons, Fairmont and Westin
Grand DC will host candlelight dinners with dining specials in
celebration of Earth Hour.

Phoenix A couple will hold
their wedding ceremony completely by candlelight and torches at the
Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort this Saturday evening in celebration
of Earth Hour.

Dallas Dallas is leading the charge for
climate awareness in the Lone Star State, with more than 30 buildings in
North Texas turning off their lights including the Bank of America
Building, Fountain Place, Chase Tower, Reunion Tower and Ferris Plaza.

Denver The
Mile High City's famous INVESCO Field is going dark for Earth Hour. The
Governor's mansion and state capitol building will also go dark in
observation of this global call for climate change. 

San
Francisco The Ferry Building on Embarcadero will go dark and
plans to offer "pedal-powered" music during an Earth Hour celebration,
with energy powered by humans riding bikes. They will join the Golden
Gate and Bay Bridges, Coit Tower and City Hall in dimming for Earth
Hour. 

Boston As Earth Hour takes over Bean Town,
buildings throughout the city of Boston, including City Hall, will turn
out in support of this year's event.  The city's education community
also has jumped full-force behind Earth Hour with several local
universities, such as Tufts and Brandeis, going dark for one hour.

Las
Vegas Visitors to Las Vegas won't be able to keep quiet as they
watch the lights of the world famous Las Vegas Strip turn off for Earth
Hour. Visitors and residents alike will get a chance to see such iconic
landmarks as the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign and Luxor's
shining beam turn out for this extraordinary event.

More than 45 national
organizations have pledged their support for Earth Hour and are
encouraging their members and local chapters across the country to get
involved. The National Education Association, American Federation of
Teachers, NAACP, LULAC, Youth Service America, 4-H, National Park
Service's WebRangers, Jane Goodall's Roots and Shoots, Earth Day
Network, National Honor Society, YMCA for the USA, Building Owners and
Managers Association International, Unitarian Universalist Association,
and the United Church of Christ join the diverse group of supporters for
2010.

Earth Hour will be celebrated on many well-known college
campuses.

• University of Virginia-
  Non-essential lights will be turned off across campus during Earth Hour.
  Local businesses are being encouraged to join with students and faculty
  in turning out.
• Michigan State University - Events are
  taking place across campus to recognize Earth Hour including a steel
  drum circle performance, poetry slam, relaxation lessons and a jazz
  performance.
• Universityof Phoenix - the online university
  is encouraging Earth Hour participation across all campuses nationwide
  and will be turning off the lights in Central Administration buildings
  in Phoenix.
• Universityof Florida - The lights around
  Century Tower and lights on fountains and on outdoor art installations
  will be turned off from Friday evening through Monday morning in
  recognition of Earth Hour.
• Wake Forest- Students created
  an Earth
  Hour video to encourage participation on campus and will host a
  lights-out event on campus which will feature a light bulb exchange,
  free pizza and environmental games.
• GeorgeWashington
  University - The University will host "blackout" and
  "glow-in-the-dark" parties in residence halls and will feature a Battle
  of the Bands in the dark.

Sports figures, actors and models
are supporting Earth Hour 2010. New
England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and his wife
supermodel Gisele
Bündchen, as well as two-time NBA MVP and Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash have recorded public service
announcements (PSAs) to help raise awareness of the significance of
climate change action.  Edward
Norton has signed on for the second year in a row to show his
support for Earth Hour with a new video encouraging people to join the
movement with him.

Facebook®
and Twitter continue to be the biggest drivers of awareness and action
about Earth Hour.  Facebook will continue to help raise awareness for
Earth Hour with a lights out profile picture and status message on key
Pages including Facebook, Celebs, Sports, Education, Facebook for Good,
among others. In addition, Earth Hour videos and PSAs posted on
YouTube.com have been viewed more than 500,000 times.

During
the largest global call to action on climate change in history, the
U.S. will be joined by more than 3,500 cities, towns and villages in 125
countries including; Athens, Bangkok, Barcelona, Beijing, Berlin,
Buenos Aires, Cairo, Cape Town, Copenhagen, Dubai, Hong Kong, Istanbul,
Kuala Lumpur, London, Manila, Mexico City, Moscow, Mumbai, Nairobi,
Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Rome, Singapore, Toronto, Stockholm, Hiroshima
and Zimbabwe.

Countries participating for the
first time include; Nepal, Kosovo, Mongolia, Madagascar, Mauritius,
Czech Republic, Cambodia, Northern Mariana Islands, Tanzania, Oman,
Mozambique, Brunei, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Faro Islands, Laos, Slovenia,
Lithuania, Bangladesh, Channel Islands, Cook Islands, Malta, Nigeria,
Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Paraguay, Bonaire, Morocco, Liechtenstein,
Uruguay, Zimbabwe, Samoa, Sri Lanka and Macau.

The
Great Pyramids of Giza, one the world's greatest symbol of the power of
collective action, heads up a list of more than 1,200 landmarks around
the planet switching off their lights for Earth Hour, including:

• Italy's Trevi Fountain in Rome and Leaning Tower of Pisa
• Big
  Ben, the London Eye and Houses of Parliament in London
• Edinburgh
  Castle in Scotland
• India Gate and Red Fort in Delhi
• Victoria
  Falls in Zimbabwe
• Bosphorous Bridge in Istanbul
• Hohensalzburg
  Castle in Salzburg
• Independence Angel in Mexico City
• Eiffel
  Tower in Paris
• Brandenburg Gate in Berlin
• Hiroshima
  Peace Memorial
• London Eye, Table Mountain
• Christ the
  Redeemer statue
• Sydney Opera House
• Burj Khalifa - The
  world's largest building

WWF hopes that this Saturday's
event is just one step in an ongoing conversation and continual effort
toward creating a cleaner, safer and more secure future. 

WWF
officials stress the importance of safety during Earth Hour, asking that
all lighting related to public safety remain on.