Earth Hour 2016: Canadians dim the lights (Photo)

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was one of many Canadians who joined millions around the world Saturday night in turning off their lights for Earth Hour.

Government buildings and monuments across the country also went dim from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. local time, including Toronto’s CN tower, the cross on Montreal’s Mount Royal and Edmonton’s High Level bridge.

Lights went out for the hour-long event – from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm local time – in Beijing, Moscow, Beirut, Cairo, Athens, Rome, and Paris. The lights atop the Empire State Building in New York were dimmed, and some billboards in Times Square also went dark.

In Seoul, the glass-covered City Hall was among several public buildings where officials switched off the lights inside and out.

Lights illuminating landmarks such as the massive COEX shopping mall, the city’s main railway station and several bridges on the Han River were all either turned off or dimmed.

In Beijing, Chinese actress Li Bingbing showed up at the iconic Temple of Confucius, which was shut dark for an hour while municipal government officials announced that the city’s energy conservation slogan would be “Consume less, consume wisely.”

David Miller, CEO of World Wildlife Fund-Canada, says critics who measure the event’s success in megawatt hours are missing the point.

“Earth Hour has been part of a movement that has made a very real difference and I think this year we have to celebrate that success,” he said. “It’s certainly never been about the amount of energy saved on the night.”

Agencies/Canadajournal