J. Eklöf, The Darkness Manifesto : How light pollution threatens the ancient rhythms of life, Trans. E. DeNorma, London, Bodley Head, 2022, 240 p.
The world’s flora and fauna have evolved to operate in the natural cycle of day and night. But constant illumination has made light pollution a major issue. From space, our planet glows brightly, 24/7. By extending our day, we have forced out the inhabitants of the night and disrupted the circadian rhythms necessary to sustain all living things. Our cities’ streetlamps and neon signs are altering entire ecosystems.
Johan Eklöf encourages us to appreciate natural darkness and its unique benefits. He also writes passionately about the domino effect of damage we inflict by keeping the lights on : insects failing to reproduce ; birds blinded and bewildered ; bats starving as they wait in vain for insects that only come out in the dark. And humans can find that our hormones, weight and mental well-being are all impacted.
Johan Eklöf, PhD, is a Swedish bat scientist and writer, most known for his work on microbat vision and more recently, light pollution. He lives in the west of Sweden, where he works as a conservationist and copywriter. Johan has studied bats for almost twenty years and now has his own consultancy company, hired by authorities, wind companies, municipalities, city planners and environmental organizations as an expert on bats, night ecology, and nature-friendly lighting. The Darkness Manifesto is his first book to be translated into English.
