LUCI Asia Urban Lighting Workshop
– Highlights
2nd Asia Urban Lighting Workshop in Asia
The Seoul Metropolitan Government and LUCI were the hosts of the 2018 Asia Urban Lighting Workshop on 27 – 29 June 2018. The workshop brought together 50 city representatives from 23 cities. They were joined by an audience of over 50 lighting professionals during key presentation sessions. In total, over 114 participants attended the event.
Held for the second consecutive year, the workshop was the opportunity to lay the foundation for the joint development of urban lighting in the Asian region. The 2018 Asia Urban Lighting Workshop was based on the theme “The role of urban lighting for sustainable development,” with six sub-themes: people, safety, culture, economy, the environment and the future.
Lighting policies of cities across Asia
This year’s workshop focused on collectively exploring the lighting policies of different cities in Asia.Representatives from cities briefly shared the current status of urban lighting in their respective municipalities, followed by extensive discussions on policies related to the sub-themes and sustainable growth. These included the cities of Bharatpur (Nepal), Chengdu (China), Hong Kong, Gangneung (S. Korea), Quezon (Philippines) and Yala (Thailand). LUCI members can download the ppts in the Members Area.
Although there were large differences in terms of the current status of urban lighting in each city, participants formed a consensus on the importance of saving energy, the use of eco-friendly energy sources, and the establishment of smart lighting systems in order to achieve sustainable development.
Urban lighting in Seoul
A presentation on “Urban lighting in Seoul” by Kim Dae-Kwon, the Team Leader of Urban Light Policy Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, enabled workshop attendees to explore the urban lighting development process and core policies of the City of Seoul. The capital of the Republic of Korea and global megacity in Asia with a population nearing 10 million, Seoul also plays its part as a future city leading the flow of change with advanced technology incorporated throughout the city.
The lecture helped the audience understand the multitude of implemented projects and policy direction of the Seoul Metropolitan Government in order to achieve sustainable urban development while accentuating the very characteristics of Seoul itself.
It addressed, among other topics, the designation of lighting environment management zones, ordinances to prevent light pollution, and smart lighting policy.
Inspirational speeches from experts
Four expert practitioners provided insightful lectures: internationally-renowned lighting designer, Kaoru Mende, shared his vision about the future of urban lighting, while Reiko Kasai, a key player in the establishment of urban lighting master plans in cities in the Southeast Asian region, explained the lighting plan of Singapore.
Ji Hye Paik, addressed the importance of human-friendly lighting design by sharing cases of people-centered lighting design projects, and Mark Burton-Page, General Director of LUCI shared with the audience innovative smart lighting cases that will play a crucial role for lighting development in the future.
These progressive and diverse viewpoints aimed to inspire participants and to help them broaden their point of view beyond strictly focusing on policy as city officials.
Group discussion on LUCI Pillars
A group discussion, held during the last session of the workshop, was based on the sharing and understanding of the LUCI pillars as outlined in the LUCI Strategic Plan 2017 – 2027.
The five pillars – Health & Wellbeing, Art & Culture, Public Space, Social Cohesion and Governance – reflect potential solutions for some of the challenges that cities face today.
In a discussion enriched by the diverse backgrounds and experience of the individuals from different cities in Asia, participants discussed practical issues they were experiencing in relation to each pillar. They also reached an agreement on the roles of urban lighting in achieving improvement on the pillar topics.
The attendants were also able to experience the lighting around the city of Seoul through visits to Seoul Sky, located in Jamsil Lotte Tower, to capture the panoramic view of Seoul’s nightscape and the free outdoor advertisement zone of the COEX building in Gangnam.
Seoul Metropolitan Government and LUCI will continue to host this workshop in the years to come to help promote the joint development of urban lighting in the Asian region.
Event pictures
We are happy to share some photos from the conference. You can access them here.
Please be sure to use the noted ©photo credits if sharing these via social media or your communication channels.
Photo credits
© Seoul Metropolitan Government