The Zoological Lighting Institute is soon
to release its documentary film, 'Brilliant Darkness: Hotaru in the Night' and 'The Light of
the Genji'.
We are screening these films at the Cultural Center of the Philippines during the Leapfrog From Disaster Symposium. These films might
change the way architects see light forever! In a fun night of film, dinner, and
discovery complemented by
luminescent drinks and dessert, speakers, guests, and delegates of the symposium will explore what
it is to live at night in the digital age. We
will watch advance screenings of the two films, discover strategies to
conserve the luminous environment in a Keynote speech by James Karl Fischer
PhD, (Executive Director of The Zoological Lighting Institute), and
explore together under the brilliance of fireflies and art designed to
celebrate the night!
The film screening has an underlying aim of wildlife conservation and animal
welfare. In the film Brilliant Darkness: Hotaru in the Night; Dr. James
Lloyd equates lapses in firefly conservation to a 'canary in a
coal-mine', highlighting the environmental dangers posed by current
practices in artificial night lighting. The associated lecture invokes
physical concepts of the ‘photic field’ to advance architectural
practice or even the built environment industries, beyond current practices dependent upon abstract and ill-suited
ecological assessment criteria. Finally, it teaches us what
they can do to overcome client anxiety and so create collaborative
designs amenable to wildlife and the nocturnal habitats that we all
depend upon. Photo-Diverstiy: The Architecture of Fireflies also teaches that we can protect public health, safety and welfare by
alleviating problems associated with artificial night lighting in our
work and practices.
Organized and led by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA)-USA and Leapfrog Project including the American Institute of Architects’ AIA NY Design for Risk and Reconstruction (DfRR) and AIA International, "Leapfrog From Disaster" will be held in the Philippines on November 1 – 7, 2014 to bring together world-leading pioneers in Resilience, Architecture, and Ecology.
“Leapfrog Project’s role and potential for the Philippines is staked out, and a unique role for (Filipino) architects defined. (This) symposium will be hugely important as the one year anniversary of the disaster (Haiyan/Yolanda) approaches,” said USA Ambassador (ret) John F. Maisto, President of the US-Philippines Society.
Speakers, which include influencers in science, business, government, and the arts, as well as the delegates will be challenged to re-invent the post-disaster paradigm, going beyond current aspirations and expectations in post-disaster rehabilitation.
“Typhoon Haiyan/Yolanda was very devastating and horrible. Having witnessed its impacts firsthand and assisted in rebuilding, I saw the tremendous amount of work going on including all the help that’s happening around the world. I’m delighted to hear of the efforts being made toward this symposium. It sounds super special, positive, innovative, and I hope it will go a long way,” shared Billy Dec, The Whitehouse, US President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI).
Ultimately the Symposium aims to: Organize a genuinely collaborative post-disaster rebuilding initiative that utilizes wide-ranging local, national and international expertise, efforts, and resources to help Tacloban and its neighboring cities rebuild with resilience; Engage different schools of thought from design, science, technology and business, through interdisciplinary discourse and group activities both during and after the symposium; Birth a new school of architecture-and-design-thinking from the typhoon rebuilding efforts, which may inform future natural hazard resilience programs worldwide; Develop ecologically-friendly architectural solutions that help protect the rich biodiversity of the region and beyond.
Tickets to 'Brilliant Darkness: Hotaru in the Night' are included in your registration. Don't delay, register today! Register Now
About Leapfrog Project
Leapfrog Project was officially launched during the 2014 American Institute of Architects (AIA) National Convention and is now deployed to respond to the call of rebuilding. It is a project under the Orem Foundation, a US registered 501(c)(3) tax exempt Non-Profit Corporation. It rallies a number of local and international partners to collaborate in helping Tacloban and its neighbouring cities rebuild with resilience, to serve as model of post-disaster reconstruction to the rest of the country and perhaps, the world.
