The independent student newspaper of Northeastern University

The Huntington News

The independent student newspaper of Northeastern University

The Huntington News

The independent student newspaper of Northeastern University

The Huntington News

When the lights go down in the city

By Rebecca Fenton, News staff

If the future of global warming is written in the stars, Boston residents may soon have a better opportunity to read it.
On Saturday night at 8:30, the city of Boston turned out lights in major local buildings and on signs to recognize Earth Hour:’ the chance to vote for environmentally green initiatives with a light switch.
First honored in Sydney, Australia two years ago, Earth Hour has grown into a global movement with 74 participating countries. Cities across the United States volunteered to join.
‘While it will always be about climate change, this year it is about voting for action,’ said Dan Forman, public relations manager for the World Wildlife Fund, which sponsored Earth Hour. ‘It doesn’t matter where you live or how much money you have ‘- everyone can participate.’
This year marks an important potential moment for climate change, Forman said. The statistical outcome of Earth Hour will be presented to leaders at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, to encourage official government policies to take action against global warming.
‘We want to make sure people understand that the idea is to identify unnecessary lights and to turn them off,’ said Peter Strasser, managing director of the International Dark-Sky Association, a group devoted to the preservation of dark night skies. ‘It’s an idea that we don’t have the luxury of being wasteful, and that’s what we are about ending.’
Unnecessary lighting goes beyond environmental considerations, Strasser said. The disruption of circadian rhythm has also been attributed to light pollution.
‘If you live in a city, there are going to be lights,’ said Jessica Squires, a freshman dual psychology and education major who said the city’s near-constant luminance has never interfered with her sleep. ‘It’s part of living in Boston.’
Squires and other Northeastern students agree that iconic beacons like the CITGO sign haven’t just earned a reputation of being Boston’s nightlight but are landmarks.
‘When I would go to Red Sox games I would use the CITGO sign to find the T stop,’ said Adam Sell, a senior journalism major.
Despite Boston’s participation in Earth Hour, Sell said he’s unconvinced of the effectiveness of Earth Hour’s long-term goals.
‘I think it’s more symbolic than practical,’ he said.
Boston is one of the 400 cities worldwide that pledged to turn off its lights Saturday, according to Mass Audubon, a nonprofit organization devoted to protecting the nature of Massachusetts. But the benefits of becoming a more energy conscious city go beyond saving money and energy. Darker night skies may help to preserve wildlife as well.
‘Mayor Menino has the goal of Boston being the greenest city in America,’ said Jack Clarke, director of public policy and government relations at Mass Audubon.
The goal of turning lights out is not only to reduce light pollution, but to protect the migratory pattern of birds, he said.
Audubon’s environmental partnership with the city has helped to launch Lights Out Boston, a campaign whose success has exceeded the organization’s expectations.
‘When we started this program we expected at least one building to participate,’ Clarke said. ‘[We hoped] that turning off the lights in the John Hancock tower would serve as a model to the rest of the city.’
The campaign’s voluntary program to help preserve spring’s 2009 bird migratory season gained support from 47 commercial skyscrapers in downtown Boston.
‘It’s a real successful program and the building owners and managers in Boston have been a help,’ Clarke said.
Around campus, students have been exposed to recent energy conservation initiatives through the Husky Energy Action Team (HEAT).
‘We did not advertise Earth Hour as a part of ‘Do It In the Dark’ because we thought that Northeastern would be advertising it,’ said Jessica Dervin-Ackerman, a senior environmental geology major and director of policy for HEAT.
Next year, HEAT will advertise Earth Hour as part of their ‘Do It In the Dark’ energy saving competition between residence halls, Dervin-Ackerman said.
The preservation of the dark night sky is one many people take for granted. What many people do not realize is that it is possible to see stars in even the most urban environments.
‘In Flagstaff, Ariz., you can walk down the streets and see the Milky Way,’ said Joan Chamberlin, vice president of the Astronomical Society of Northern New England (ASNNE). ‘If they can use their lighting well enough to make it possible, then other cities can do that, too. It does not have to be a part of urban living.’
ASNNE works to promote public awareness of astronomy in an all-volunteer non-profit educational organization, Chamberlain said.
‘It’s our cultural heritage to be able to go out and see the night sky,’ Chamberlin said. ‘It would be a terrible shame if our kids and grandkids don’t have that opportunity.’

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