Ikea stores at Dubai Festival City and Yas Island turned off the external lights on its logo during the Earth Hour in the UAE on Saturday March 31 from 8.30pm and 9.30pm to help spread the message that a sustainable development requires more action.

The Earth Hour theme for 2012 is 'I will, if you will'.

Mile Franicevic, Sr General Manager, Ikea - UAE said: "We are very proud to take part in Earth Hour in the UAE. Earth Hour shows that individual action on a mass scale can help change our planet for the better. I am also extremely happy to note that our customers understand the value of sustainability and environment consciousness."

In its continuous bid to supportUAE's move towards a more sustainable environment, IkeaUAE will also begin to phase out all incandescent light bulbs in its stores and targets to completely eliminate them.

Since the beginning, the goals of sustainability and environmental design have been integral to the Ikea business strategy and Ikea is constantly doing what it can to help create a world where it can take better care of the environment, the earth's resources, and each other. This improvement is a never-ending job at Ikea.

"Lighting is a basic necessity and commonly accounts for almost 25% of electricity consumption in a typical household. In line with the global Ikea initiatives, Ikea UAEhas decided to take ownership of the environment. By encouraging everyone to adopt energy-saving lighting solutions, UAE residents can take pride in creating a home that contributes to a healthier planet, and helps them save money," Mr Franicevic added.

Ikea has proactively embarked on many green initiatives like Say "No" to Plastic Bags, Earth Hour and the solar-energy SUNNAN lamp campaign. Ikea also offers many environmentally friendly products such as the RATIONELL waste system and Ikea 365+ food savers, to encourage UAE residents to live a more sustainable life at home.

As a leading home furnishing retailer Ikea hopes to support UAE residents in making informed choices on energy-efficient lightings thereby helping to speed up the market transition to energy-saving lights.a