By: Stacey Francesconi

On April 2nd all around the world buildings, homes, landmarks, and historical places will Light It Up Blue in support of National Autism Day. What is Light It Up Blue? The movement encourages you to change white bulbs outside or inside of your house or business to blue bulbs in order to shed light on Autism. This national campaign was started by Autism Speaks; the world’s leading Autism science and advocacy organization. On December 18, 2007, the United Nations General Assembly, by unanimous consent, designated April 2nd as World Autism Awareness Day. The Light It Up Blue campaign started in 2010 to celebrate this day and raise awareness for those affected by Autism.

This campaign has grown to worldly proportions! There are currently 1,000 buildings in over 180 U.S. cities and 30 countries around the world participating in the campaign. Some of these buildings include the Empire state building, Leaning Tower of Pisa, Los Angeles International Airport, Universal Studios Orlando, and the International Space Station. The upcoming 2015 campaign is set to include The Crazy Horse Memorial in South Dakota, Palm Beach Royal Park Bridge in West Palm Beach, Florida, and The Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

In order to make this campaign an even bigger success in 2015 we need to show our support! There are many ways that you can make a difference. You can start as small as taking a blue selfie and using the hashtag #LIUB to spread awareness on social media or as large as contacting local city officials and businesses to join in the blue movement. Some other ways to Light It Up Blue involve tinting windows with blue gel sheets, projecting the Autism Speaks logo onto your building, or asking friends, family, and coworkers to wear blue April 2nd. There are also many businesses that will participate in raising awareness this April through special discounts and donations. Some of those businesses include Toy’s R Us, Dollar General, Walgreens, and Build A Bear. Once you’ve changed the bulbs, taken your selfies, and gotten your blue gear on you can also text AUTISM to 25383 to make a $10 donation to Autism Speaks. Let’s make 2015 the bluest year yet! Join Reaching Milestones as we Light It Up Blue for National Autism Awareness Day on April 2nd! Make sure to post your blue photos on our FaceBook with the hashtag #LIUB.