HSBC offices in 51 countries turned off their lights for Earth Hour last week, including the HSBC Malta Operations Centre in Qormi.

The annual campaign, led by the World Wildlife Fund, once again called upon individuals and businesses across the world to switch off their lights for one hour as a sign of respect for the environment.

Across the globe, HSBC demonstrated its commitment to Earth Hour not only by turning off lights in buildings but also by aiming to reduce its annual employee carbon emissions by a tonne, from 3.5 tonnes in 2012 to 2.5 by 2020.

“HSBC Malta is a long-standing member of the ever-growing Global Earth Hour Community,” said HSBC Malta CEO Mark Watkinson.

“We value this campaign as a symbolic gesture to raise awareness about energy consumption, which also demonstrates a global ability to coordinate resources in response to the environmental challenges our planet is facing.”

William Thomas, group head, HSBC Technology and Services Sustainability, added: “Earth Hour is a moment out of our busy lives to remember the value of the Earth’s resources and make a commitment to finding energy-saving solutions.

“Our people have come up with some fantastic energy-efficiency ideas already, and we are encouraging them to keep working to help us meet our stretching corporate targets.”