We were delighted to organize an interdisciplinary symposium exploring the impact of light pollution on insect declines, hosted by the Exeter Visual Ecology research group in collaboration with Status of Insects.
Insect populations are undergoing significant declines, and artificial light at night has been identified as a potentially major – but often poorly understood – threat to insect biodiversity and ecosystem function. Our international symposium, the first of its kind, brought together leading researchers, conservationists, policy makers, NGOs, and those working in industry, both locally and globally, to tackle this topic. We aggregated existing knowledge concerning the direct and indirect consequences of artificial light at night for insect biodiversity and used workshops and horizon scan activities to explore new avenues to reduce the ecological impact of light pollution.
The symposium was held on the University of Exeter’s Cornwall campus in Penryn, United Kingdom, from the 12th to the 14th of May, 2025. The program included:
Link to the conference website: Conference website
Link to the conference abstract booklet: Conference abstract booklet
Organizing committee:
Network of over 50 scientists working across more than 15 countries to understand the effects of artificial light at night on insects. Among other activities, the working group is currently planning a globally distributed experiment on insect flight-to-light behavior, a symposium at SICB, and an in-person workshop at Exeter University.
To get involved, email Avalon Owens at aowens@fas.harvard.edu or Brett Seymoure at bmseymoure@utep.edu.