For more information about the Daylight Hour campaign, visit DaylightHour.org.

by Sabrina Tenteromano, Program Assistant, Building Energy Exchange

Daylight Hour is our annual social media campaign designed to raise awareness about the importance of using natural daylight in lieu of electric lighting for energy efficiency and well-being. This year’s campaign, the seventh year of collaborative promotion around the benefits of daylight, was celebrated in the most diverse way yet. Some participants shut off lights from noon to 1pm local time at broken-in home offices while others were back in their offices after 15 months of COVID-19 quarantine—our first ever hybrid edition.

398 registrants, representing 28 U.S. states and 19 countries, turned off non-essential artificial lights for one hour at noon and soaked up the natural daylight. For many of us, the events of the past 15 months have simultaneously shrunk the world and globalized our thoughts as well as isolated us both physically and emotionally. We’ve thought more about our immediate environs and our neighbors. It’s not surprising then that this year Daylight Hour touched two more U.S. states than last year and we are proud it has continued to connect participants from around the world.

While many of us have had to adjust to a dramatically different rhythm, daylight’s benefits like the potential for increased productivity, comfort, well-being, and energy savings have been constant.

We are delighted about the success of Daylight Hour this year and its ability to again bring together a global community despite differences in circumstances. We thank those who participated from home offices, to multiple offices from global companies, to universities; to Building Energy Exchange members:

Bright Power,

The Durst Organization,

EN-POWER Group,

Live Building Systems,

NYSERDA,

Steven Winter Associates,

and Tishman Speyer;

and everywhere and everyone in between.

 

We were incredibly impressed with everyone’s creativity and enthusiasm across social media and are excited to see where this campaign takes us in years to come!

 

Congratulations to our seven campaign award winners!

First Sign Up
Winner: Antonella Estrella, Willdan Engineering

 

Best Video about the Importance of Daylight Hour
Winner: Architecture Research Office

 

Most Creative Post
Winner, in office: emersion DESIGN

 

Winner, at home: EN-POWER Group

 

Welcome to Daylight Hour: New Participant
Winner: HMFH Architects

 

Co-workers: Best at-home post with pets and/or kids
Winner: Perkins Eastman, Boston Office

 

Most offices award
Winner: Willdan Engineering