🌝 Just in time for International Dark Sky Week (April 13–20, 2026), join us for a conversation about how nighttime light affects wildlife, habitat, and human health. 🌌
Whether urban, rural, or somewhere in between, every national wildlife refuge has a nighttime light footprint. Bill Kowalik, PhD, Board Chair of DarkSky Oregon, will share what light pollution means for wildlife and people, plus practical steps we can take on refuges and in our communities to reduce our light footprint.
Janelle Wicks, Executive Director of Friends of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, will highlight their annual Malheur After Dark event and share ideas for celebrating the night sky as a natural resource at your refuge.
O’Brien Prize spotlight: During the webinar, we will highlight Friends of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge’s Malheur After Dark event, a project supported in part by the National Wildlife Refuge Association’s 2024 O’Brien Prize for Refuge Friends. We will also share a brief update on the O’Brien Prize and ways Friends groups can start thinking about project ideas for this year’s opportunity, request for proposals releasing soon!
Presenters
Bill Kowalik, PhD is the Board Chair and a founding board member of DarkSky Oregon. He has three degrees in the earth sciences and decades of experience in remote sensing and technology development.
Janelle Wicks is the Executive Director of Friends of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and helps lead community-based programs like Malheur After Dark that connect people to refuges through the night sky
Responses