LightSavers during the Climate summit in Copenhagen

Demonstration projects in several cities around the world will evaluate LED lighting while promoting market uptake and encouraging LED-friendly policies and financing.
Guiyang, China
LightSavers, an international program to evaluate the use of LED lighting and smart controls in outdoor spaces, has been launched by The Climate Group at the UN climate talks in Copenhagen, Denmark. The Group’s (see press release describes several other initiatives launched simultaneously.

LightSavers will test how LEDs and smart controls perform in real-world applications, while working with its members to plan for scale-up and to encourage LED-friendly policies and financing products.

The Climate Group says that LED lamps, combined with smart controls, can cut CO2 emissions by 50 to 70%. LED lighting also reduces costs, enhances public safety, minimizes light pollution and makes public spaces friendlier at night.

The program was started by the City of Toronto and the Toronto Atmospheric Fund, which is already running a series of local projects. LightSavers is funded generously by the HSBC Climate Partnership.

LightSavers has launched a global trial to test the efficacy and cost savings of outdoor LEDs in a series of cities, beginning with Adelaide, Guiyang, Hong Kong, Kolkata, London, Mumbai, New York, Tianjin and Toronto (see details below).

The launch of the New York program was announced in September 2009 – see LED pilot projects get green light in the Big Green Apple.

The Climate Group is an independent, not-for-profit organization working internationally with government and business leaders to advance smart policies and technologies to cut global emissions and accelerate a low carbon economy.

Speaking in support of the LightSavers announcement from the C40 Mayors event in Copenhagen, the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said, "London is pleased to be working with The Climate Group to progress trials of energy-busting street lighting to speed up their uptake.

“The potential to cut the city's carbon emissions and energy bills with new technologies is huge. By working in partnership, cities have the clout to catalyse the market for greener technologies and drive down procurement costs. We are already taking a series of ambitious yet practical steps to cut carbon in London by 60 per cent by 2025 which includes the installation of 3000 LED traffic lights from 2010." [See News].

More information on the LightSavers program is available at www.theclimategroup.org/programs/leds. Details of the international trials are:

* New York City, United States
The New York Department of Transportation is testing nine LED products in Central Park and on FDR East Side Drive.

* Toronto, Canada
Four City of Toronto agencies are testing parking lot, parking garage, and pedestrian pathway LED lighting products, some with smart controls.

* London, United Kingdom
Transport for London is testing high powered LED roadway lights in demanding applications on their Red Routes.

* Adelaide, Australia
Pedestrian pathway LED retrofit in the northern parklands of Adelaide.

* Hong Kong, China
Two municipal universities are testing and comparing Japanese, Chinese, and American made LED pathway luminaries on their respective campuses.

* Guiyang, China
The municipal government is testing two Chinese-made LED street light luminaires, one on a riverside pedestrian pathway and another on a local street (see details below).

* Tianjin, China
Local government agencies are testing two Chinese-made LED street lights products in a new ecocity development and on a university campus.

* Kolkata, India
The Kolkata Municipal Corporation is testing over a 100 Indian made LED street light luminaries in several locales.

* Mumbai, India
The Thane Municipal Corporation will install a trial of LED streetlights in the Greater Mumbai Region with support from the national government's Bureau of Energy Efficiency.

Guiyang, China (Guizhou Province, in southwestern China)

Guiyang, China
The Naming River winds through Guiyang’s downtown and is a major recreational asset for local residents. Many important cultural resources are located along its banks, including the Jiaxiu Lou Tower, and pedestrian paths along both banks are popular with local residents, which are lit along their 8 kilometer length by 150-watt high pressure sodium (HPS) post-top luminaries.

Guiyang has procured and installed 130 LED luminaires of the post-top variety designed and manufactured by Hiyu in Tianjin, and using Cree LEDs. The new luminaires are rated at 120 watts and produce a warm white light, as well as decorative striations on the pavement. There are two Study Areas, one consisting of 4 baseline luminaires, and the other comprising four Hiyu LED luminaires. Monitoring began in November 2009. Interim results will be available in March 2010.

Press release
Homelights, an LED lighting specialist, signs new distribution agreements with the main stores in the sector

Established a year and a half ago, Homelights has taken its place among the lighting giants by entering an expanding market: that of the LED. With the current entry of the new European directive*, Homelights will expand its distribution network and increase its activity.

Paris, October 20, 2009 – Homelights announces the signing of new distribution agreements. Homelights will, from this time forward, be a reference in the System U and Cora hypermarkets and supermarkets and the Laurie Lumière- specialised stores. Already present in numerous stores, Homelights will continue its development and reinforce its presence in the retail outlets of its current partners: Leclerc and the independent Mr Bricolage stores. It also is currently doing tests with the Auchan store.

"By putting forward the largest line on the LED market in the largest distribution stores, we can offer our costumers a choice of quality and a credible alternative to low energy-consuming lights" states Ludovic Rambert, general director of Homelights.
The Homelights products will be distributed in more than 500 retail outlets in France as of the month of November:
- 255 System U stores on November 30
- 121 Leclerc stores
- 58 Cora stores
- 52 Laurie Lumière stores
- 35 Mr Bricolage stores
- 5 Auchan stores
* European directive in force on September 1, 2009, aimed at making incandescent lights progressively disappear from the market.

About Homelights
Created in 2008, Homelights entered as one of the first players on the market for LED light sources (Electroluminescent Diodes) – bulbs and spotlights – to be used at home and offered the largest line of products on the greater public market. Established in France and in several European countries, Homelights has introduced a great Research and Development department to be able to offer more innovating and performing solutions to consumers and to respond to the demands of the new European standards. Homelights products are available in several large distribution chains such as Centres Leclerc, Cora, the U hypermarkets and supermarkets, Auchan and Mr Bricolage.

For more information on Homelights, please visit the Internet site www.homelights.fr

How to Be Green during the Holidays

No time of the year is more emotional than the holiday season, whether you're bursting with the joy of baking and caroling or overwhelmed with the stress of shopping and wrapping. But even with all those other factors weighing on your mind, it's possible to put a green spin on your holidays; simple tips and easy substitutions mean you can come through this season of indulgence without leaving a massive carbon footprint.

Start with your gift list, where going green can mean anything from simply buying fewer gifts (the too-cluttered shelves at your giftee's house will thank you, we promise) to finding Fair Trade alternatives to holiday classics. Look for recycled paper goods, like cards and wrapping, or get creative and make your own versions of both. Green your Christmas dinner with seasonal, local ingredients and organic turkeys, and stock your bar with organic bubbly and other green cocktails. Then look for green greens for your home by choosing fresh wreaths and pesticide-free trees trimmed with energy-slashing LED lights. Put the money you saved on your electric bill toward a donation to environmental charities and let your greenbacks support green projects.

But most importantly, keep in mind that the holidays are not about the gifts, the errands, the trimmings; they're about celebrating with your family and friends and appreciating the blessings in your life. We happen to think Mother Earth is one of those blessings, so put these tips to work to help keep it that way.