Impact

THE SKY SAVES US NOW

This week we are celebrating Beautiful Favorites. The BN team put together a selection of some of our favorite Daily Fix posts, pulled from the BN Archives. The Sky Saves Us Now is one of our favorite posts from the BN Soul Impact Collection. It’s a blend of art created by the universe and a very talented fine art photographer. It will elicit your sighs, for sure.

SHOOT THE SKIES - ANTI-HUMAN TRAFFICKING PROJECT

Photographer Tanner Wendell Stewart has taken the immense beauty of the sky and translated it into his inspirational book, Shoot the Skies.

After a man approached him as he was touring in Bulgaria and tried to sell him a baby for $50, Tanner embarked on a mission. Using his artistry as a photographer, raised money by selling his book to support the A21 Campaign, a project to help raise awareness and put an end to human trafficking.

For one year, Tanner took a photo of nature and the sky each day. He compiled them as a collection for his breathtaking book. He ran a fundraising campaign on indiegogo, where he sold his Shoot the Skies book, raising more than $74,000. Tanner donate all of the proceeds to A21.

There are an estimated 27 million slaves in the world today. A21 aims to rescue them all, focusing on rescuing one victim at a time.

There is no doubt that Tanner’s generosity is as beautiful and immense as the skies that he photographs.

Watch his video here.

DARK SKIES AWARENESS PROGRAM

Dark skies are important. Without them, we can’t see the stars. Without them, human health ecology, and economics are compromised. And yet, this planet is losing its dark night skies as human population grows, electric lighting proliferates in urban and suburban sprawl. About $2.2 billion worth of energy is wasted by light pollution per year in the U.S. alone.

Around 3.3 billion people - over half of the world's population - live in cities. Most of them never see the beautiful spray of Milky Way stars as it arcs overhead because of light pollution where they live. About 22% of all energy used in the US is used for lighting. About 8% lights the great outdoors.

The International Dark Skies Association (IDA) is the recognized authority on light pollution.

IDA’s GAM Dark Skies Awareness programs are intended to raise awareness of the importance of preserving our night skies.

IDA promotes the use of limited lighting to reduce light waste. They work with manufacturers, planners, legislators, and citizens to provide energy efficient options. And they work to help create dark sky preserves. Kerry, Ireland, is the world's newest International Dark Sky Reserve.

Check out some Dark Skies Poetry, and follow the Dark Skies Awareness Blog.

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Do you have amazing photos? Enter them in this week’s BN Photo Competition. We run new creative competitions every week! Now, it’s even easier to enter with the new BeautifulNow App!