Lighting Just Around
the Corner
Street lighting plays a critical role in shaping safe, healthy, and welcoming urban environments. Yet excessive lighting creates light pollution—diminishing our connection to the night sky and negatively impacting both ecosystems and human well-being. In a country like Chile, known for having some of the world’s clearest skies, the balance between functional lighting and environmental preservation is especially vital.
LOCATION
Santiago, Chile
PARTNERS
Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile
YEAR
2015
ROLE
Urban design
Design research
This project reimagined public lighting through a multidisciplinary lens, engaging astronomers, engineers, and designers to develop more thoughtful, efficient systems for urban illumination. In Chile, municipal street lighting accounts for approximately 70% of energy expenditures, with an estimated 30% of that energy wasted. Despite growing awareness, only 42.4% of streetlights had been upgraded to energy-efficient technologies as of 2011, according to the national land registry.
I synthesized data, conducted policy research, and shaped the design vision for a new approach to pedestrian lighting. One key insight focused on the inefficiencies of existing five-meter-high luminaires—often repurposed from vehicular lighting—which exceed recommended power limits and poorly serve pedestrians.
The proposed intervention: lighting the curbs at street corners to enhance pedestrian orientation, improve safety, and create a distinct neighborhood identity. By starting with human-scale visual tasks and the actual needs of street users, the project demonstrates that well-designed, energy-conscious lighting systems can deliver safer streets while reducing economic and environmental costs.
Ultimately, the initiative sought to show that better lighting doesn’t require more lighting—and that reclaiming the night sky can begin just around the corner.
