Lighting Matters: An Introduction to Light Pollution and Night Sky/Nightscapes Conservation

Artificial light at night is essential to our lives, communities, and society. But indiscriminate, excessively bright, and badly designed lighting degrades ecosystems, imperils wildlife, wastes energy, and fails to deliver on promises of improved safety and security while also eroding our own health. What do we lose when we obliterate the stars from the night sky and drive a naturally dark night to near extinction? This presentation will explore the causes and consequences of light pollution with a focus on wildlife and ecology, explain the basics of responsible outdoor lighting, deliver good news about nightscape conservation, and equip the audience to bring back the night beginning at home. Because every day needs a night.
Laura Greenleaf has led the Virginia chapter of DarkSky International (formerly the International Dark-Sky Association) since 2013. She has delivered approximately fifty presentations, supported advocates in their own communities, aided Dark Sky Park efforts, and assisted policy initiatives. She coordinates the Virginia Responsible Streetlighting Coalition to advocate for better products and practices in Dominion Energy’s lighting division.
Laura is a lifelong conservation advocate, a Virginia Master Naturalist, and the founder of the James River Park System Invasive Plant Task Force. She grew up in Clarke County and lived in the northern Piedmont until moving to Richmond in 2007. She continues to steward her family’s land on the Blue Ridge, and she serves on the board of Friends of the Blue Ridge Mountains. She lives near the James River in Richmond with her family.
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