Program: At every moment, half the world is at night. In a little more than a century, our uncontrolled use of light has upended the nighttime environment on Earth. How does it impact the world? We'll explore what recent research has revealed about our use of excessive light at night: from human health to ecosystems, from climate change to our loss of the starry skies, and more. We'll learn about simple solutions that make light pollution the easiest environmental challenge to solve and how you can help restore the night.

Speaker: Ken Walczak

For 16 years Ken Walczak managed the Far Horizons Program at the Adler Planetarium – a research and engineering program engaging students, volunteers, and the public in hands-on, participatory science. He worked on the design and implementation of innovative instruments for light pollution research. He's authored numerous peer reviewed papers and presented at international conferences on the subject of light pollution. He helped lead the successful designation of the world’s largest Urban Night Sky Place, The Palos Preserves, southwest of Chicago. He owned a lighting and furniture design company, is a trained photographer, an avid public policy advocate, as well as an experienced science and astronomy communicator. He is a Board Member of Dark Sky International, co-found the DarkSky Chicago chapter and a member of the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES).