Las Vegas Named Showcase City for WWF's 2010 Earth Hour

Today at the iconic "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign, Las Vegas was named a showcase city for the World Wildlife Fund's (WWF) 2010 Earth Hour-a global call to action on climate change. For the announcement, Earth Hour US Managing Director Leslie Aun joined Clark County, Nevada Commissioner Larry Brown; City of Las Vegas Mayor Oscar B. Goodman; Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority Senior Vice President of Marketing Cathy Tull; Harrah's Entertainment Regional President Rick Mazer; and MGM MIRAGE Senior Vice President of Energy and Environmental Services Division Cindy Ortega.

For the second year in a row, all hotel casinos on the world famous Las Vegas Strip, along with several off-Strip properties, will turn off marquees and non-essential exterior lighting for the event. The "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign will also go dark for the hour.

Earth Hour, which takes place Saturday, March 27th at 8:30 p.m. local time, is an event in which millions of Americans will turn out their lights for one hour in support of action on climate change and towards creating a cleaner, safer and more secure future. A record 20 states, 65 cities and 11 counties in the U.S. will dim their lights for Earth Hour 2010 with more expected to join the global movement in the coming weeks.

"With just a few short weeks to go until Earth Hour 2010, we are delighted to be back in Las Vegas, a city that is once again demonstrating to the world its commitment in taking action on climate change," said Leslie Aun, Earth Hour US Managing Director. "Las Vegas is helping to turn off the lights on pollution and climate change, as we work together to build a safer, more secure future. We very much hope other cities will follow Las Vegas' lead and join in our efforts to make Earth Hour the largest call to action of all time."

Clark County, Nevada and City of Las Vegas leaders agree.

"Earth Hour is something Clark County is proud to participate in because it emphasizes the conservation we practice and promote year-round," County Commissioner Larry Brown said. "People need a reminder that change begins at home and change can start with something as small as flipping off a light switch."

"We are once again honored to serve as one of the showcase cities for Earth Hour," said Las Vegas, Nevada, Mayor Oscar B. Goodman. "Although we are best known for our world-class hotels, entertainment, restaurants and shopping, we are also leaders in sustainability. Earth Hour is a perfect fit for the city and its sustainability initiative."

At this time, Las Vegas participants include: all Boyd Gaming properties, including: California Hotel and Casino, Eldorado Casino, Fremont Hotel and Casino, Gold Coast Hotel and Casino, Jokers Wild Casino, Main Street Station Casino, Brewery and Hotel, Orleans Arena, The Orleans Hotel and Casino, Sam's Town Hotel and Gambling Hall and Suncoast Hotel and Casino; City of Las Vegas, Nevada; Clark County, Nevada; Fashion Show Las Vegas; Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas; all Harrah's Entertainment properties, including: Bally's Las Vegas, Bill's Gamblin' Hall & Saloon, Caesars Palace Las Vegas, Flamingo Las Vegas, Harrah's Las Vegas, Imperial Palace, O'Shea's Casino, Paris Las Vegas, Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino Las Vegas and Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino Las Vegas; Hard Rock Hotel and Casino; Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority; Las Vegas Sands Corp. properties, including: The Palazzo Las Vegas and The Venetian Las Vegas; Mandarin Oriental, Las Vegas; all MGM MIRAGE properties, including: ARIA Resort & Casino at CityCenter, Bellagio, Circus Circus Las Vegas, Excalibur Hotel Casino Las Vegas, Luxor, Mandalay Bay Resort, MGM Grand Las Vegas, Monte Carlo Resort and Casino, New York-New York, Slots-A-Fun at Circus Circus Las Vegas, THEhotel at Mandalay Bay, The Mirage Resort, The Signature at MGM Grand and Vdara Hotel and Spa at CityCenter; Miracle Mile Shops; Riviera Hotel Casino Las Vegas; Sahara Hotel & Casino; Stratosphere Las Vegas Hotel & Casino; Springs Preserve; The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas; Treasure Island Las Vegas; Tropicana Las Vegas; Trump International Hotel & Tower Las Vegas; and Wynn properties, including: Encore Las Vegas and Wynn Las Vegas.

2010 marks the third year of the Earth Hour, which attracted more than 80 million participants in the U.S. last year, and nearly a billion people around the world, as lights dimmed on such global icons as the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Sydney's Opera House, the Great Pyramids of Gaza, New York's Empire State Building, and of course the Las Vegas Strip.

WWF officials said Earth Hour is continuing to build strong momentum, with significantly more states and cities signed up compared with this time last year.

States officially participating in Earth Hour 2010 to date are Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin-triple the number that took part in 2009. Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, St. Louis, and Winston-Salem are among the cities taking part. The list of participating communities includes Huntsville, AL; Lansing, MI; Malibu, CA; Plainsboro, NJ; Montgomery County, MD; and Valparaiso, IN. City and state officials have committed to turning off non-essential lighting in state capital buildings, city halls, governors' residences, and other landmarks.

In addition to the Las Vegas Strip, U.S. landmarks such as Mount Rushmore in South Dakota, St. Louis' Gateway Arch, Sea World in Orlando, New York's Empire State Building, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, Washington D.C.'s National Cathedral, California's Santa Monica Pier and the Space Needle in Seattle are among the hundreds of sites that will turn off non-essential lighting for the hour, in what is expected to be the largest-ever call to action on climate change.

Outside the U.S., WWF said they expect more than 800 cities in 80 countries to take part in Earth Hour 2010, including Athens, Bangkok, Cape Town, Delhi, Dubai, Geneva, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Manila, Moscow, Rome, Seoul, Singapore, Sydney, Tel Aviv and Toronto. Cities participating for the first time include Stockholm and Hiroshima.

ABOUT EARTH HOUR:
Since its inception three years ago, Earth Hour has captured the world's imagination becoming a global phenomenon. Last year, for Earth Hour 2009 nearly one billion people in 4,100 cities in 87 countries on seven continents turned out. In the U.S. alone, 80 million Americans and 318 cities officially voted for action with their light switch. These people and municipalities were joined by iconic landmarks including: the Las Vegas Strip, the Chrysler and Empire State Buildings in New York City, the Space Needle in Seattle, Church of Latter-Day Saints Temple in Salt Lake City, the Gateway Arch in St. Louis and the National Cathedral in Washington DC. International landmarks that turned off their lights included the Great Pyramids of Giza, Parthenon in Athens, St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, Big Ben and Houses of Parliament in London, Paris' Elysee Palace and Eiffel Tower, Beijing's Birds Nest and Water Cube, Symphony of Lights in Hong Kong, Sydney's Opera House and Christ de Redeemer status in Rio de Janeiro.

About World Wildlife Fund:
WWF is the world's largest conservation organization, working in 100 countries for nearly half a century. With the support of almost 5 million members worldwide, WWF is dedicated to delivering science-based solutions to preserve the diversity and abundance of life on Earth, stop the degradation of the environment and combat climate change. Visit www.worldwildlife.org to learn more.

Photo Credit Steve Spatafore

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