by Arline L. Bronzaft, Ph.D., Board of Directors, GrowNYC, and Co-founder, The Quiet Coalition
Organizations worldwide are recognizing International Noise Awareness Day today. This will be the 26th celebration of a day that was initiated by the Center for Hearing and Communication to raise the awareness of the dangers of noise to our hearing, health and quality of life, as well as urging action to reduce noise pollution in our environment. Before the pandemic, many events such as vans offering hearing tests, lectures, and conferences were held in different cities on this day. But today recognition of the day is expected to be largely virtual. Everyone is urged by the Center of Hearing and Communication to participate in this day by speaking out for changes that will reduce environmental noise pollution.
The Center for Hearing and Communication provides hashtags and an INAD logo to assist you in advocating for greater quiet and less noise in our environment. The site also provides information on activities that you can initiate to promote this goal. Everyone is urged to explore the site to learn more about sound and noise, especially by reading some of its articles
International Noise Awareness Day was initiated in 1996 by the CHC, and I was thrilled when Nancy Nadler, now Deputy Executive Director of the Center, asked me to join her and CHC in establishing International Noise Awareness Day. I continue to work with Nancy Nadler and her associates, and while I miss the in-person events that were held on INAD in the past, I hope that in 2021 we will still be able to involve many people in our efforts to raise awareness about the harmful effects of noise. Yes, twenty-five years later, we still need to combat this enemy—noise!
