Pierantonio Cinzano, PhD in Astronomy (Dottore di Ricerca in Astronomia) at the University of Padova, Italy, carried out his research about "Light pollution and the protection of sites" at the Department of Astronomy of the same University until april 2006. He has been scientific advisor of the research project "Light pollution and protection of sites" of the University funded under the "Projects for young researchers". Now he is carrying out his research for the "Istituto di Scienza e Tecnologia dell'Inquinamento Luminoso" (Light Pollution Science and Technology Institute, ISTIL) where he is responsible of the research project “Global monitoring of light pollution and night sky brightness from satellite measurements” funded by the Italian Space Agency (ASI), the research project "The second world atlas of the night sky brightness" and the development of LPTRAN, the software for the tomography of light pollution in atmosphere.

In year 2000 he obtained the First World Atlas of Night Sky Brightness, based on satellite mesurements, which gained a remarkable relevance in the public opinion. The first map of the artificial night sky brightness in Europe was presented at the Special Environmental Symposium of the United Nations (UN) “Preserving the astronomical sky” (Wien, 13-23 July 1999) held during the III Conference on the Pacific Uses of Outer Space, and it has been awarded by the Italian Physical Society (SIF) as the best communication about "Geophysics and Environmental Physics" at the LXXXV Annual Meeting.

Pierantonio Cinzano is member of the Technical Committee TC 4-21 "Interference by light of astronomical observations" of the "Commission Internationale de l’Eclairage" (CIE), the Commission 50 "The Protection of existing and potential observatory sites" of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and the IAU Working Group "Controlling light pollution". He is also member of the Working Group GL8 "Light Pollution" of the Commission "Light and lighting" of the "Ente Italiano di Unificazione" (UNI), the Italian body of standardization, and he was part of the small team that wrote the standard rule UNI10819. He is Scientific Director of the Italian section of the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA), the international organization to preserve and protect the nighttime environment, which awarded him in many occasions.

He is President and founder of ISTIL, "Istituto di Scienza e Tecnologia dell'Inquinamento Luminoso" (Light Pollution Science and Technology Institute), a small no-profit not-commercial organization with the aim to promote the scientific and technologic research about light pollution (www.istil.it). He set up the first Laboratory of Photometry and Radiometry of Light Pollution (LPLAB, www.lplab.it), in year 2001.

Since year 1989, Pierantonio Cinzano is one of the promoters of the battle against light pollution in Italy. Still a student, he founded the "Commissione Nazionale Inquinamento Luminoso" (National Committee about Light Pollution) of the "Unione Astrofili Italiani", the association of Italian amateurs astronomers. He organized the first scientific meeting in Italy for the University of Padova, with Prof. F. Bertola, "Inquinamento luminoso: misure e possibilità di intervento" (Asiago Astrophysical Observatory, 1995). He organized the International convention “Light Pollution and the Protection of the Night Environment” (Venice, 2002) with the patronage and the support of UNESCO-ROSTE and the Regione Veneto and he has been editor of the Proceedings. He has been author of a book titled "Inquinamento luminoso e protezione del cielo notturno" (Light pollution and the protection of the night sky), published as a Memory of the "Istituto Veneto di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti", Venezia. He has been editor of the monographic issue of the Memories of the Italian Astronomical Society (SAIt) "Modelling and Measuring light pollution" (These books are all available in PDF at www.lightpollution.it).

He has been co-advisor of three Thesis on light pollution and he carried out a consistent activity of development of software for the evaluation of the environmental impact of light pollution, consultance about national and regional bills, didactics, popularization and many research publications on peer-reviewed journals.