Second DARKER SKY project partner meeting back-to-back with EURODARK Conference

The DARKER SKY project partners gathered on 12 and 13 March for the second partner meeting hosted by the University of Groningen.

The agenda included a visit to the Dark Sky Park Lauwersmeer where the partners were introduced to the journey of how the national park became a Dark Sky Park and which activities take place in the area to inform and engage people in the protection of the dark skies. At the harbour of Lauwersoog, one of the project demonstrator sites, the partners were introduced to the ‘Masterplan Darkness’, a strategy aimed at mitigating light pollution in the area. The Masterplan employs a bottom-up approach which includes the harbour management, entrepreneurs, scientists, and the people of the Lauwersoog village as well as other stakeholders in its co-development.

On the second day, the partners gathered for a long but inspiring day of presentations and discussions about project updates, developments, and upcoming plans. Topics included the progress at the demonstrator sites, the development of the light measurement monitoring guide, assessment and evaluation of the demonstrator sites, details of the biodiversity measurements, and the 3D modelling and Virtual Reality approach for co-designing plans.

The project meeting was followed by the EURODARK Conference, the 16th European Symposium for the Protection of the Night Sky organised by the University of Groningen within the framework of the DARKER SKY and the KID projects. With the KID project almost coming to an end, the results of the projects were showcased through talks and posters.

The next partner meeting will take place in Autumn in Lower Saxony.