Starlight Initiative and the La Palma Declaration

The secretary general attend a meeting of the Starlight initiative, supported by the Canary islands Government, on La Palma from 19 - 21 April.

This meeting was particularly interesting in terms of the novelty of the subject matter, bring together Astrophysicists and nature conservations, and examining the role of clear night skies from the perspective of culture, science and nature conservation.

It was clear from the discussions that nature conservation sites have a role to play in enhancing places which are less light polluted, as well as all their other functions. It was also clear that light pollution can cause dysfunctional behaviors in various wildlife species, and this also needs to be taken into account when considering conservation issues.

The main conclusions from the meeting were a declaration and resolution for action, which, inter alia, suggests keeping the Convention involved in the discussions, with other related MEA's and UN bodies. Further detail on the declaration is below, and more information on the whole event and background is available at http://www.starlight2007.net/.

The Government of the canary islands is to be congratulated on promoting this interesting initiative, with the support of UNESCO.

Full article here