The Optical Society (OSA) has announced that Royal Philips is the first sponsor of the International Year of Light and Light-Based Technologies (IYL 2015). Under the new partnerships, Royal Philips will collaborate with OSA as well as the other seven founding partners of IYL 2015 to support the global initiative.
The United Nations proclaimed 2015 as the International Year of Light last December, and the plans for the year-long initiative are underway by a large consortium of scientific bodies, with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as the lead agency. The IYL 2015 aims to raise global awareness of how light-based technologies promote sustainable development and provide solutions to global challenges in energy, education, agriculture and health.
OSA has partnered with Philips in the past, including on the 2012 OSA Renewable Energy and the Environment Optics and Photonics Congress in Eindhoven, Netherlands.
As a patron sponsor, Philips will work closely with the IYL 2015 planners to highlight the crucial role that light and light-based technologies play in improving the quality of people’s lives worldwide. Philips will also support a key IYL 2015 programme called ‘Study after Sunset', promoting the use of portable solar-powered high-brightness LED lanterns in regions of the world with little or no reliable source of light.
‘IYL 2015 is a celebration of light, and Philips has been a recognised global leader in innovative lighting solutions for well over a century,’ said OSA CEO Elizabeth Rogan, a member of the IYL 2015 steering committee. ‘We’ve collaborated with Philips on successful programmes before and look forward to working with them on IYL 2015. Companies like Philips will be well served by joining this ever growing year-long focus, with the ability to showcase their breakthroughs, applications and light-inspired experiences with the world.’
