More than 120 Radisson Blu- and Park Inn by Radisson hotels across Europe, the Middle East and Africa participate in Earth Hour 2012: This coming Saturday at 8:30 pm they turn off their non-essential lights and other electrical appliances in order to raise awareness for the need to take action against climate change.

Earth Hour is an environmental initiative organized by WWF (World Wildlife Fund). It started in 2007 in Sydney, and soon became a global event. In 2012, households, businesses and governments in more than 5,200 cities in 135 countries worldwide will participate in Earth Hour.

Rezidor hotels take the opportunity to engage guests, employees and business partners during Earth Hour and arrange special events in the dark. The Radisson Blu Diplomat Hotel in Manama/Bahrain for example will organize a lecture with an environmental specialist. The guests of Radisson Blu Resort El Quseir/Egypt and Radisson Blu Gewandhaus Hotel, Dresden/Germany, will enjoy a candlelight dinner. The luxurious Radisson Royal Hotel, Moscow/Russia will totally switch off lights on its impressive historical façade.

“Earth Hour is an excellent opportunity to raise awareness and engage guests in Rezidor’s energy saving initiatives”, said Inge Huijbrechts, Director Responsible Business at Rezidor. “We clearly support WWF to go ‘Beyond the Hour’ and continue energy saving initiatives as part of our award winning Responsible Business programme.”

This long-standing and company-wide programme is based on three pillars: health & safety for guests and employees; respect for social & ethical issues within the company and community; and a reduced impact on theenvironment. In early 2012, Rezidor also launched “Think Planet”, an ambitious energy saving initiative which aims to save 25% on energy consumption by 2016.