International Year of Light & Light-Based Technologies 2015 - Ghana

16/06/2015

Corporate Bodies support International Year of Light & Light-based Technologies 2015 in Ghana

The Ghana National Commission for UNESCO and the Local Organizing Committee of International Year of Light & Light-based Technologies (IYL, 2015) in Ghana has received support from 4 Corporate bodies towards the hosting of the up-coming Africa Regional Conference and Exhibition scheduled to take place in Accra from 14th – 16th September, 2015 at the Accra International Conference Centre, Ghana.

Dutch & Co. Ltd., GOIL, Lake Side Estate and Star Property Management have presented various financial and product support towards the smooth organization of the Conference.

Receiving the donations from the corporate organizations on behalf of the Minister for Education and Chairperson of the Ghana Commission for UNESCO, Prof. Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang, the Ag. Secretary-General of the Commission, Mr. Riche-Mike Wellington said: “The upcoming Africa Regional Conference and Exhibition will provide a platform for companies in the area of photonics and optical technologies, including lasers in Ghana and abroad to showcase how these technologies are providing cutting-edge solutions in education, agriculture, communication, energy and health for the appreciation by policy-makers and the general public.’’

The Conference and Exhibition aims, among other things, to create awareness on the potential of light and light-based technologies in solving many of the development challenges facing the African Continent.

The Event will also promote interaction and dialogue among academics, industries and professionals in using optics and photonics concepts in tapping developmental strategies for communities with the view to enabling policy-makers appreciate the relevance for the support of science for economic advancement. It would further attract young minds and innovators to come out with new ideas and inventions in the application of Light-Based Technologies for the benefit of the Continent.

Mr. Wellington therefore called on corporate Ghana to partner with the Ministry of Education and the Ghana Commission for UNESCO for the realization of the above outcomes.

20/05/2015

We wish to inform you that the dates for the Africa Regional Conference and Exhibition, originally planned for 26th – 28th May, 2015 at the Accra International Conference Centre has been changed to 14th – 16th September, 2015.

The postponement has become necessary mainly due to the many requests received from institutions, Agencies and the general public to allow adequate time to prepare and showcase in the exhibition.

Any inconvenience this might have caused is deeply regretted.

19/03/2015

Ghana launches International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies 2015 in Accra, 17th March, 2015.

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18/03/2015

On Tuesday, 17th March, 2015, Ghana successfully launched the International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies 2015 (IYL, 2015) and unveiled the Ghana logo for the year-long celebration. The launch, which brought together the Diplomatic Corps, the UN family, academia, Scientists, Ministries, Departments and Agencies, students, members of the general public and the media, sought to adequately inform Ghana, the African Continent and the world on Ghana's celebration. It further sought support in the realization of the four main outcomes of Ghana's celebration: upgrading of the Laser and Fibre Optics Centre at the University of Cape Coast into a full-fledged Institute for capacity-building; the establishment in the country of a sub-regional Laser Medical Application Laboratory (LMAL); a Solar Technology Research Centre to enhance the study and promotion of solar science and the use of alternative energy as well as the establishment of a Museum of Light and Light-based Technologies as part of solutions to emerging needs in the post-2015 UN development agenda.

Subsequent to this, Ghana will be organizing an Africa Regional Conference and Exhibition in May, from 26th to 28. Kindly visit www.light2015.unescoghana.org for more information or registration.

Official website for the International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies (IYL2015) containing resources, international contacts, and IYL events.

04/02/2015

Personal views on the International Year of Light


By James Dacey (physicsworld.com)

“In the beginning there was light – the Big Bang,” said Steve Chu, talking on Monday at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris during the opening ceremony of the International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies (IYL 2015). Chu – a Nobel-prize winner and former US energy secretary – was among a smorgasbord of speakers at the two-day event, which brought together scientists, artists, politicians and many others with a particular interest in light and its applications.

Being a journalist, I was at the event with my own light-based technology, the humble SLR camera. I was recording a series of interviews with people at the event, including Chu, to get their thoughts on what the year of light means to them. As I’ve mentioned in a previous article, the fact that “light” is such an all-encompassing theme can also make it difficult to get a handle on what IYL 2015 is all about. I hope that the resulting video – to be published on physicsworld.com next week – will bring clarity to some of the initiatives and projects in the spotlight this year.

One of the people I caught up with is John Dudley, head of the international steering committee for IYL 2015. I laid down an unenviable challenge for Dudley of explaining what IYL 2015 is all about in 20 seconds or less – see his response in the video clip above.

Other people I caught up with spoke about some of the specific opportunities created by modern light technologies. Chu, for instance, spoke of how solar-power technologies are becoming increasingly competitive with traditional sources of energy based on fossil fuels. “I see the harnessing of light’s energy to be something that would give us clean energy, but also energy in the developing world that can leapfrog past transmission light grids,” he told me.

In fact, the idea that light-based technologies can provide solutions to challenges in the developing world was one of the key themes on the second day of the event. One of the speakers I caught up with is Linda Wamune, Kenya’s country director for an organization called SunnyMoney, which is promoting and distributing LED-based solar lanterns. These devices are particularly useful in rural locations that are not currently connected to electricity grids. At present, many people in the developing world use kerosene lamps, which are expensive and dangerous because of the fumes they produce.

Courtesy of Physicsworld.com

13/01/2015

We wish to inform you that the Africa Regional Conference for the International Year of Light & Light-based Technologies 2015, scheduled for 17 - 19 March, 2015 in Accra, has been rescheduled for 26 - 28 May, 2015. Kindly visit our website www.light2015.unescoghana.org for more information.

08/01/2015

Check out invitation to the public for abstracts for the Africa Regional Conference on the International Year of Light in Ghana: www.light2015.unescoghana.org