>> Candle Night in Solviva Organic Farm--Lights of Soil, Lights of Winds
>> Turn off the Lights and Watch the Stars on October 17--Lights-Down Event in Kofu Valley
>> Candle Night Summer Solstice 2009--Report on June 21
>> Event report: Dim It 2009--Hong Kong
>> Enjoy the Starlight--The International Year of Astronomy 2009
>> Event: 'Dim It' in Hong Kong-- Lights-out Event on June 21 (Updated)
>> Many People Enjoyed Candle Night--Candle Night Saskatchewan, Canada
>> Brief Report on Candle Night December 2008
>> Candle Night in Slovenia--Event Report in December 2009
>> Candle Night in Zenryouji Temple--'Go home make a wish'
>> Recreating Ancient Night of 'Heian' Dynasty--Lights-down at Kyoto Gyoen Forests
>> Event Report: Dim It--Hong Kong
>> Event Report: Lights Out Day in China
>> Event Report: Lights Out Day--Taiwan
>> Event Report: Candle Night Korea
>> Over 65,000 Facilities to Join--MOE's Lights Down Campaign
>> Event Update: Candle Night Korea
>> Brief Report of Candle Night Winter Solstice 2007
>> Artist's Performances--Candle Night in Governador Valadares, Brazil
>> Getting the Candle Night Message Across to the World--Fuji Xerox Co.
>> A Family's Wishes on Candle Night--The Story of Ivory
>> Effects of MOE's "Lights Down" Campaign June 2007
>> Candle Night in Taipei 2007
>> Candle Night Summer Solstice 2007 in Tokyo
>> MOE's 'Lights Down Campaign'--Black Illumination 2007
>> Mauritius held the 2nd Candle Night.
>> "Five-minute Action" took place in Europe, Feb 1, 2007
>> Reports from Overseas--December 2006
>> Candle Night Winter Solstice 2006--Kobe, Japan
>> Preparation also Underway in Candlelight--South Korea Winter 2006
>> A Brief Report of Candle Night Summer Solstice 2006
>> MOE's Black Illumination 2006
>> National Candle Night in Mauritius 2006
>> Milk Carton Lanterns Lighting up Kumamoto
>> Beeswax candle workshop and volunteer meeting at JFS
>> Candle Night Winter Solstice 2006--Rikkyo University
>> A Living Organism--Candle Night in Sapporo 2005
>> Candle Night in Shanghai 2005
>> Greetings to Candle Nighters on the other side of the world.
>> Candle Night in South Korea 2005
>> Candle Night at Harajuku Cat Street
>> 'Candle Night'-Summer Solstice 2004 in Japan

MOE's 'Lights Down Campaign'--Black Illumination 2007


Japan's Ministry of the Environment (MOE) will hold a nationwide "Lights Down" and CO2 reduction campaign from June 22 to 24, 2007.

The campaign aims to reduce CO2 emissions, a major cause of global warming. Under the title of "Black Illumination 2007," the ministry calls for major "lights-up" facilities, businesses and homes across Japan to turn their lights off for two hours from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. on the evening of June 24.

Major department stores, TV stations, banks, citizen's centers, office buildings, hotels, museums, churches and hospitals have joined the campaign since it started in 2003. In the first year, 2,278 facilities and landmarks turned their lights off, and about 5 million people participated in the campaign.
In 2004, 6,088 facilities and an estimated 6.4 million people joined, followed by 22,716 facilities and about 6.64 million in 2005. In 2006, the number of facilities increased to 39,845, which translates to 812,508 kWh of electricity. This is equal to the annual CO2 emissions of 52 to 92 average Japanese households.

For the 2007 campaign, 61,682 facilities all over Japan have confirmed their participation as of June 13. Major department stores, schools and municipal governments are promoting the campaign. During this time of raising awareness for global warming and environmental issues, more and more people and facilities are expected to join the campaign.

http://www.wanokurashi.ne.jp/act/campaign/
(Japanese)

(Keiko Hoshino)
June 20, 2007