The 16th Nuit de l'obscurité (Night of Darkness) will take place on 14 October in nearly 30 municipalities across Wallonia and Brussels, the Association for the Protection of the Sky and the Nocturnal Environment (ASCEN) announced in a press release on Tuesday.
The initiative, which has been organised since 1995 in Flanders and since 2008 in Wallonia, aims to "raise awareness among the general public and political decision-makers" about the fight against light pollution.
For this year's edition, 28 municipalities, including Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, Dinant, Spa, Fauvillers and Montigny-le-Tilleul, will organise activities for all ages.
On the shores of the lake in Louvain-la-Neuve, for example, apart from simply switching off the lighting, a public night sky observation session will take place. In Sambreville, the Institution for Child and Family Development and the commune's cultural centre will lead a "dramatised storytelling walk" in the Moignelée valley.
The event was created with the aim of "raising awareness of the energy wastage that takes place every night and the environmental impact on flora and fauna," the organisers stated in a press release. "What we are asking for is not the total elimination of outdoor lighting, but a more reasonable and measured attitude about this issue," the association added.
Information about the event can be found on the association's website.
