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Urban Lighting Research Transdisciplinary Framework—A Collaborative Process with Lighting Professionals

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  • Catherine Pérez Vega

    (Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Müggelseedamm 310, 12587 Berlin, Germany
    Department of Biology, Chemistry, and Pharmacy, Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany
    Faculty of Architecture and Design, Hochschule Wismar University of Applied Sciences Technology, Business and Design, 23966 Wismar, Germany)

  • Karolina M. Zielinska-Dabkowska

    (Faculty of Architecture and Design, Hochschule Wismar University of Applied Sciences Technology, Business and Design, 23966 Wismar, Germany
    GUT Light Lab, Faculty of Architecture, Gdansk University of Technology (GUT), 80-233 Gdansk, Poland)

  • Franz Hölker

    (Leibniz-Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Müggelseedamm 310, 12587 Berlin, Germany
    Department of Biology, Chemistry, and Pharmacy, Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, 14195 Berlin, Germany)

Abstract

Over the past decades, lighting professionals have influenced the experience of the night by brightly illuminating streets, buildings, skylines, and landscapes 24/7. When this became the accepted norm, a dual perspective on night-time was shaped and the visual enjoyment of visitors after dusk was prioritized over natural nightscapes (nocturnal landscapes). During this time, researchers of artificial light at night (ALAN) observed and reported a gradual increase in unnatural brightness and a shift in color of the night-time environment. As a consequence, ALAN has been identified as a relevant pollutant of aquatic and terrestrial habitats, and an environmental stressor, which may adversely affect a wide range of organisms, from micro-organisms to humans. Unfortunately, lighting professionals and ALAN researchers usually attempt to solve today’s sustainable urban lighting problems distinctive to their fields of study, without a dialogue between research and practice. Therefore, in order to translate research knowledge as an applicable solution for the lighting practice and to minimize the impact on the environment, a collaborative framework involving a transdisciplinary process with lighting professionals is crucial to potentially bring the practice, research, production, decision-making, and planning closer to each other. This paper presents a framework to help reduce the existing gap of knowledge, because appropriate lighting applications depend upon it. Access to less light polluted nightscapes in urban environments is just as important as access to unpolluted water, food, and air. This call for action towards sustainable urban lighting should be included in future lighting policies to solve the urgent environmental and health challenges facing our world.

Suggested Citation

  • Catherine Pérez Vega & Karolina M. Zielinska-Dabkowska & Franz Hölker, 2021. "Urban Lighting Research Transdisciplinary Framework—A Collaborative Process with Lighting Professionals," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(2), pages 1-18, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:18:y:2021:i:2:p:624-:d:479566
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Karolina M. Zielinska-Dabkowska & Katarzyna Szlachetko & Katarzyna Bobkowska, 2021. "An Impact Analysis of Artificial Light at Night (ALAN) on Bats. A Case Study of the Historic Monument and Natura 2000 Wisłoujście Fortress in Gdansk, Poland," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(21), pages 1-48, October.

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