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When the lights go out across five major cities in Indonesia on the last Saturday night of this month, it won’t, for a change, be because of a power cut.

The reason for the voluntary blackout is that Indonesia, along with 110 other countries, will be participating in Earth Hour 2010 — a World Wildlife Fund campaign aimed at promoting sustainable use of the world’s resources and greater awareness of climate change.

“So many student groups and local communities in the cities of Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta, Surabaya and Denpasar have shown very high enthusiasm about Earth Hour,” said Fitrian Ardiansyah, program director for climate and energy at WWF Indonesia. “The mayor of Yogyakarta has expressed his support and is willing to turn off the lights at the city’s iconic Tugu monument,” he said.

This year’s Earth Hour will see people turning off the lights in 1,882 cities worldwide from 8.30 p.m. for one hour on March 27.

To increase Indonesians’ awareness of Earth Hour, WWF Indonesia has launched an Earth Hour Web site, a Twitter account and a Facebook page.

“WWF Indonesia is aiming for at least 10 percent of people in Jakarta and the other participating cities to switch of their lights this year,” Fitrian said.

According to WWF Indonesia, Greater Jakarta alone consumes about 23 percent of the nation’s electricity, while Java and Bali together use 78 percent.

“Last year, the Earth Hour campaign managed to save 180 megawatts in Java and Bali,” said Pia Alisjahbana, chairwoman of WWF Indonesia’s advisory board. “That’s equal to the amount of energy needed to power 900 villages.”

“This year, we are targeting a 500 MW electricity saving,” Pia added.

Earth Hour started in Australia in 2007 when 2.2 million homes and businesses turned their lights off. Last year, hundreds of millions of people in 88 countries took part, according to Earth Hour’s Web site. Jakarta was involved with Governor Fauzi Bowo inaugurated as the Earth Hour ambassador for Indonesia.

“This year will mark the second time Jakarta has participated in the campaign. Last year we managed to save around 50 MW. This year, we aim to triple that to 150 MW,” Achmad Harijadi, Jakarta’s deputy governor for spatial planning, said on Thursday.

Five of the capital’s iconic locations — City Hall in Central Jakarta, the Youth Monument in South Jakarta, the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta, the National Monument Square in Central Jakarta and the Arjuna Wiwaha statue and its fountain in Central Jakarta — would be without lights for an hour on March 27, Achmad said.

“Of course, all of Jakarta’s administration offices, businesses and the general public are urged to do the same,” Achmad said. “We are going to issue a note to appeal to the city’s mayors and local government officials as well as all districts and subdistricts to participate.”

He said managers of office buildings on Jl. M.H. Thamrin, Jl. Jend. Sudirman and Jl. H.R. Rasuna Said had been notified of the city’s request that they participate in Earth Hour. Last year, around 200 buildings in the city’s “golden triangle” of Jl. M.H. Thamrin-Jl Jend. Sudirman, Jl Gatot Subroto, and Jl H.R. Rasuna Said joined in.