Ruskin Hartley of The International Dark-Sky Association (DarkSky), will be featured speaker at the Annual Meeting of the Washington Lakes Watershed Association at Medomak Family Camp in Washington, Maine on August 12, 2023 at 6:00 PM. The meeting will begin with a meet and greet, followed by a presentation of results of the 2023 Annual WLWA Photo Contest. Mr. Hartley’s presentation will follow.
DarkSky is the recognized worldwide authority combating light pollution. Ruskin Hartley has been the Executive Director of DarkSky since 2018. Since joining DarkSky he has made great strides as an influential environmentalist and moved DarkSky as a global movement to protect natural night skies and mitigate light pollution’s measurable harm to human health, wildlife, ecosystems and climate. He has spent the last five years inspiring and collaborating with leaders and citizens worldwide, advocating for responsible residential and business outdoor lighting practices. In doing so, Mr. Hartley has helped DarkSky enlist and empower DarkSky members, supporters, scientists, environmentalists, political leaders, and concerned citizens to take action.
Many studies have now demonstrated that light pollution is harmful to all living things on earth. Light pollution is increasing by ten percent per year. Scientists link light pollution to global insect decline, the death of millions of migrating birds, increased carbon emissions, and human disease. High levels of light at night have been shown to lower melatonin production that can affect human health, increasing risks for obesity, depression, sleep disorders, diabetes, breast cancer and more.
Eighty three percent of the world’s population, and 99 percent in the United States and Europe live under light polluted skies. Light pollution is caused by a variety of sources, including streetlights, parking lot lights, security lights, sports field lights, digital billboards, and even our own homes. Light emissions from the continents represent at least one percent of global energy use. Globally we spend at least $50 billion in energy costs to produce light that escapes into space.
Mr. Hartley’s lecture will focus on light pollution causes and effects, as well as sharing simple solutions to addressing light pollution, including what DarkSky has defined as the Five Principles for Responsible Outdoor Lighting for better quality light at night.
As people who are blessed to have some of the darkest skies of any populated area of Maine, this presentation by Ruskin Hartley should be of sincere interest to one and all. Dark skies are definitely a natural resource worth appreciating and conserving.
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