Romania readies for lights off hour again this year, within Earth Hour movement

Romania is getting ready to turn off the lights for the sixth year in a row on March 29 this year, when people all over the globe will turn off electricity for an hour. Events will be organized in different Romanian cities, celebrating the hour when environmentally conscious people choose to use fewer resources. Lights will go off on Saturday, March 29, between 20:30 and 21:30, local time, and many regional cities in Romania chose to join the event. For many of them, public lighting too will go off during the interval. This year, 13 cities joined the competition, to become the Earth Hour capital of Romania in 2014: Adjud, Baia Mare, Bistrița, Botoșani, Brăila, Bucharest, Craiova, Panciu, Râmnicu Vâlcea, Salonta, Satu Mare, Sighișoara and Tulcea. The winner will have to stand out with its various activities organized on this occasion. The winning city will be chosen by World Wide Fund Romania, and announced on April 19. In 2012, Bistrita was the Earth Hour capital, and Timisoara was the winner in 2013. On this year's Earth Hour, in capital Bucharest, an unplugged concert will start at 20:00 in the Carol Park, near the monument. Local band Sistem will play, along with Muse Quartet – the group that played classical music on the street during the street protests against the Rosia Montana gold mine, while the jugglers from Incubator 107 will perform drum rhythms by Jean-Baptiste Manitou from the Humains Profiles association. In the central city of Brasov, people have been asked to gather downtown at Modarom at 20:15, and march until the Sfatului square, all carrying candles along the way. Public lighting in the city's historic center will turn off at 20:30. In Iasi, in North – Eastern Romania, public lighting too will turn off in central areas, where a street acting show will be organized, including flame throwers. In Sibiu, in Central Romania, people have been asked to gather downtown in the Piata Mare (Large Square) at 20:30, and bring jars and candles, to provide natural lighting to the area, when public lighting will turn off. The movement started in 2007 in Australia, when over 2.2 million individuals and 2,000 businesses turned their lights out for one hour. In 2012, over 6900 cities in 152 countries around the world joined Earth Hour and turned off the lights. Romania joined the movement in 2009. editor@romania-insider.com (photo source: WWF Romania)