On search of SILENCE AND STARLIT SKIES
Fairlady|May/June 2022
Being able to experience quiet and darkness matters. It matters because we matter: our emotional and physical health is at risk, as well as the wellbeing of all living things.
ROBYN VON GEUSAU
On search of SILENCE AND STARLIT SKIES

Tonight, step outside and lookup. What do you see? And hear? ? Chances are, unless you live way beyond the cityscape, you won't see the Milky Way but rather a lot of reflected artificial light.

It's become near-impossible to escape the ever-present hum of 21st-century living. Our days are punctuated with the buzz of traffic, TVs blaring, house alarms, nearby construction sites, drones, leaf blowers and lawnmowers. Even nature walks are often disrupted by cellphones and loud music. And, at night, neighbours' intrusive external lighting comes streaming in through our windows.

The sounds of silence at least of nature – are slipping or further and further away from us, much like the sight of a sky lit up by nothing but stars.

Local statistics are not available, but the numbers out of the US are alarming enough: 97% of its population is exposed to aviation and highway noise. Quiet is nearly extinct there.

A recent report by the Institute for Futures Research at Stellenbosch University reiterates that quiet spaces are rapidly vanishing. 'In recent decades, dark skies have been recognised as in need of protection against light pollution. So, too, it is time we recognise that quiet spaces in a world full of noise also need protection. Our growing urbanised world is a noisy place. Noise pollution, along with air pollution, is cited as a factor in quality of life.'

Hello, darkness,my old friend

Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May/June 2022-Ausgabe von Fairlady.

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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der May/June 2022-Ausgabe von Fairlady.

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