Why do we need to protect the night?
Half of the world and 50% of all habitats are at nighttime. Since humans are naturally dayactive and spend nights inside houses or illuminated outdoor spaces, we tend to forget the importance of this part of life. More than two-thirds of animals are nocturnal and are adapted to low light levels. Those animals that sleep at night need natural darkness. The same is true for plants. The natural day-night rhythm is so important that it is written into the genetic code of every organism, no matter if it is an animal, plant, or microorganism.
Artificial light fundamentally changes the characteristics of the night fundametally, endangering all habitats. It is not confined to cities but is also used in the open oceans. Consequences of light pollutants have even been shown in the deep sea, although the light doesn’t reach it. With growing research on light emissions, we realise that artificial light is one of the great pollutants of our time, endangering ecosystems and adding to biodiversity loss.
For us humans, darkness at night is also indispensable. It’s essential for good sleep and health. Increased light levels have been linked in various studies to the most common diseases today: obesity, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, reproductive issues, cancer and mental illness.
The night sky with its celestial objects is the oldest cultural heritage of humankind. It’s the foundation of time measuring and navigation, as well as the source of myths all over the world. In our modern society, space is the place of our dreams and visions for our future. Astronomy is the most common start for children to engage in natural science and technology. Stars help us to overcome racial and national barriers, it creates a feeling of unity for humankind. It also can help to reduce pain, strengthen mental health, and amplify social behaviour.
Artificial light has allowed humans to use the night for work and social activities, but it can also take away the benefits of the night. Though a world without artificial light is probably not acceptable anymore, it is necessary to reduce light to what is really needed and reduce its negative impacts.
How are we different from other light pollution organisations?
We will bring together the work of many individuals and groups in Europe and act on the common ground of our members. Each group will still keep its identity and can act on its own account, but this NGO will be a platform to cooperate, exchange knowledge and compile shared documents, e.g. expert statements or comments on legislation drafts and policy.
Although we will work in outreach, our main goal is to use our common expertise for light pollution control and to influence lighting regulations for the geographical European area. We will not run events like the “Under One Sky” conference, though we will help coordinate the European Dark Sky Symposium EuroDark.
We also do not plan to certify Dark Sky parks or Dark Sky Tourism areas, instead, we support the DarkSky International and Starlight Foundation certificates. We cooperate with Dark Sky International and Starlight Foundation, to share outreach work and to bring groups and people into our mutual actions to protect the natural darkness and nights.
Why should I support this NGO ?
There are many NGOs working for the protection of the environment, but there are few organisations that work on light pollution. For the big conservation organisations, light pollution is a small side topic at best. It does affect all habitats. Some of its effects are very immediate on local scale, e.g. loss of bat species or bird strike, while others work slowly and interact with other environmental stressors, multiplying their impact and weakening the ecosystems.
Different to climate change, plastic waste, chemical pollution, overfishing, and several other environmental threats, a high number of people, including many dedicated nature conservatives, haven’t heard about light pollution yet or don’t understand the full extent of it. This frequently results in harmful light installation.
At the same time, light pollution can be reduced with the right knowledge and technology. Our goal is to communicate this knowledge to improve light use by sharing guidelines, lobbying for regulations to ensure good light planning, and raising awareness for the necessity of such actions.
We rely on donations and membership fees to cover our expenses for the infrastructure and the work of our officers, so please contact us if you want to become a night protector.
Why should my group join this NGO ?
Across Europe, numerous individuals and organisations are tackling light pollution at various levels. Some focus on advocacy, others on outreach, some work within their local communities, while others are involved in research or lighting design. Historically, connecting these diverse efforts and finding collaborative partners has been challenging, particularly for smaller activist groups lacking the resources and expertise needed for success.
Our goal is to bring these different actors together and facilitate the exchange of information. Rather than creating a large organisation with subgroups under our banner, we aim to connect individuals, fostering mutual support and amplifying our collective impact.