It's the night the lights go out in Georgia.

Across Atlanta and the world, millions of lights will be shut off at 8:30 p.m. local time to celebrate Earth Hour, a publicity push to draw attention to conservation and climate change.

The darkness lasts for an hour, and will include landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, the London Eye, Big Ben and the Empire State Building.

In Atlanta, Westin Peachtree Plaza manager on duty Kati Sprague said the hotel would shut off its outdoor sign and the lights on top of the building. Lobby lights will also be shut off, and guests can have a green cocktail in the darkness at the Westin's Earth Hour happy hour.

Sprague said going green is a continuing trend, and the hotel is focused on several measures. The Westin posts signs around the hotel informing people about why the lights will be darkened.

"Guests in general are really excited," she said. "People take pride in the fact that where they're staying, it matters to them, as well."

In 2010, 128 countries participated in the event, according to Earth Hour's website. Dozens of Atlanta businesses and institutions shut off the lights.

Last year, the reduction in energy use in downtown Atlanta was eight megawatts, the equivalent to if 2,000 homes had dropped off the city's electric grid, said Lynn Wallace, a spokeswoman for Georgia Power.

Wallace said Georgia Power was not asked to participate in the event this year, and would not be doing any monitoring. In 2009, the organization saw a 2.6 percent reduction in energy usage downtown; the reduction was 3.3 percent last year. Wallace said as the population increases, she would expect the effect of Earth Hour to continue to grow.

But not all cities are seeing that trend. In Toronto, Calgary's CTV reported, 2010's Earth Hour efforts saved 296 megawatts of power, a 10 percent reduction. In 2009, the city saw a savings of 454 megawatts, or 15 percent.