Participants in the United States and Australia who turned off their lights as part of the purposeful temporary blackout say by acting individually they hope to influence others to do the same, ABC News reported Sunday.

"If everybody just started to think about what little bits and pieces they can do for them in the big picture, that's great. And this is the first little step toward something big and better," one anonymous Earth Hour participant in Sydney said following Saturday night's blackout.

The Internet search engine Google also joined the environmental effort, posting a message to its visitors during the second-annual event.

"We've turned the lights out. Now it's your turn," the popular site offered visitors.

World Wildlife Fund President Carter Roberts told ABC News that businesses worldwide had also embraced the cause, investigating ways to improve their energy efficiency.

In Australia, 2 million people and 2,000 businesses turned off their lights, ABC reported.