Last week, the Virgin Limited Edition and the rest of the world ‘celebrated’ Earth Hour, the global event (or self-billed ‘movement’) that has for the last 10 years achieved massive environmental impact by getting organisations to create awareness of climate change by doing something that dramatically raises awareness for the cause.
Coordinated by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), an unprecendented 187 countries and territories took part this year, with 3,000 landmarks switching off their lights and millions of individuals, businesses and organisations across seven continents taking part in their own way.
Virgin Limited Edition, the award-winning collection of unique retreats also took part. After all, sustainability is at their very heart. Last Saturday, their global experiences contributed to the movement in a series of fun, experiential and thought-provoking ways, shared with their guests.
The Kasbah Tamadot in beautiful Morocco served dinner unplugged, with food from the hotel’s garden, inviting their guests to experience a slice of real Berber life. Ulusaba Private Game Reserve in South Africa did something similar, in addition to replacing the usual Game Drive with a Game Walk in the bush to reduce the use of fuel. Dinner at The Lodge in Verbier featured vegetarian-inspired cuisine cooked on an open fire and cocktails were served to celebrate, featuring locally foraged damsons. Back here in London, Babylon Restaurant served up their usually spectacular dinners, by using energy-efficient cooking methods with locally sourced food (beetroot from Hampshire and gin from Sipsmith, just 5 miles up the road). Nothing was more local than honey from The Roof Garden’s own beehives of course.
