CieloBuio-coordinamento per la protezione del cielo notturno (''Coordination for the protection of the night sky'') is a non-profit organization that operates in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

for the protection of the

night Night, or nighttime, is the period of darkness when the Sun is below the horizon. Sunlight illuminates one side of the Earth, leaving the other in darkness. The opposite of nighttime is daytime. Earth's rotation causes the appearance of ...

sky by promoting a culture of eco-friendly lighting and raising public awareness about the phenomenon of

light pollution Light pollution is the presence of any unwanted, inappropriate, or excessive artificial Visible spectrum, lighting. In a descriptive sense, the term ''light pollution'' refers to the effects of any poorly implemented lighting sources, during the ...

. Created in

Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...

in 1997 around a mailing-list of people interested in the topic of light pollution, CieloBuio now brings together professional and amateur

astronomers An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. Astronomers observe astronomical objects, such as stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies – in either observ ...

, environmentalists, lighting engineers, and simply interested people throughout Italy. The current president is Fabio Arcidiacono. In its fight against light pollution, CieloBuio has as a reference model to support and promote the law of the

region n. 17/2000, in all its forms and extensions. This law is based on the criterion of ''zero pollution'', according to which, with very few exceptions, no streetlamp can send light above the horizontal plane. CieloBuio in recent years has played a crucial role in the approval of other regional laws inspired by the Lombard model, among which we mention those in force in the regions of

Emilia-Romagna Emilia-Romagna (, , both , ; or ; ) is an Regions of Italy, administrative region of northern Italy, comprising the historical regions of Emilia (region), Emilia and Romagna. Its capital is Bologna. It has an area of , and a population of 4.4 m ...

(LR 19/03),

Marche Marche ( ; ), in English sometimes referred to as the Marches ( ) from the Italian name of the region (Le Marche), is one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. The region is located in the Central Italy, central area of the country, ...

(LR 10/02),

Abruzzo Abruzzo (, ; ; , ''Abbrìzze'' or ''Abbrèzze'' ; ), historically also known as Abruzzi, is a Regions of Italy, region of Southern Italy with an area of 10,763 square km (4,156 sq mi) and a population of 1.3 million. It is divided into four ...

( LR 12/05),

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

(LR 15/05),

Umbria Umbria ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region of central Italy. It includes Lake Trasimeno and Cascata delle Marmore, Marmore Falls, and is crossed by the Tiber. It is the only landlocked region on the Italian Peninsula, Apennine Peninsula. The re ...

(LR 20/05),

Friuli-Venezia Giulia Friuli-Venezia Giulia () is one of the 20 regions of Italy and one of five autonomous regions with special statute. The regional capital is Trieste on the Gulf of Trieste, a bay of the Adriatic Sea. Friuli-Venezia Giulia has an area of and a ...

(LR 15/07) and

Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...

(LR 17/09). In addition, the law passed in Lombardy has also inspired the drafting of laws in the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

(the first country in the world to enact legislation against light pollution, which applies throughout the country) and in

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

. CieloBuio works in collaboration with the Italian section of the

International Dark-Sky Association DarkSky International, formerly the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA), is a United States–based nonprofit organization incorporated in 1988 by founders David Crawford, a professional astronomer, and Tim Hunter, a physician and amateu ...

and various scientific organizations to promote a national law protecting the night environment in the whole of Italy.

Bodies

CieloBuio is divided into the following bodies, more or less formal: * CieloBuio mailing list, an organ of free association of ideas and activities to support actions on the ground; * CieloBuio non-profit association, legally recognized, bringing together all those who wish to support more effectively the activities of the working groups; * the governing council, composed of six members and an honorary president, who makes decisions and sets the strategies for action CieloBuio; * the technical-scientific committee, composed of six experts who research and develop environmentally friendly lighting solutions to offer and promote.

Honours

In 2000, for the fundamental role played in favor of the law against light pollution in Lombardy, the amateur Gruppo Astrofili Brianza honored CieloBuio with the dedication of the asteroid 13777 Cielobuio, discovered by members of this alliance at Sormano (

Como Como (, ; , or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Nestled at the southwestern branch of the picturesque Lake Como, the city is a renowned tourist destination, ce ...

, Italy) on October 20, 1998. In 2003, the European section of the International Dark-Sky Association awarded the president of CieloBuio, Diego Bonata, with the ''Galileo Award'', an award presented annually to individuals or groups that stand out in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

in the fight for the preservation of the darkness of the night sky. In 2004, CieloBuio was among the winners of the ''Innovazione Amica dell'Ambiente'' (''Environmentally Friendly Innovation'') Award, delivered by the Italian environmentalist organization

Legambiente Legambiente is an Italian environmentalist association with roots in the anti-nuclear movement that developed in Italy and throughout the Western world in the second half of the 1970s. Founded in 1980 as part of the ARCI, it later became a stand- ...

in recognition of the results obtained in terms of quality of light, energy saving and environmental protection through the application of the regional law n. 17/00 of Lombardy.

References

{{reflist

External links

Official web site of CieloBuio
Astronomy organizations Environmental organisations based in Italy +