The ENLIGHTENme consortium gathers in Bologna
Hosted by the University of Bologna and project partner NERI, the annual ENLIGHTENme project meeting took place on the 7th and 8th of June 2023. In the stunning settings of the university and the NERI Foundation headquarters in Longiano, about 90km south-east from Bologna, the consortium members provided updates on the different work areas and their progress. Lively discussions accompanied the presentations and the scene was set for the tasks lying ahead.
Piazza Lambrakis highlights
One of the many highlights of the meeting was an evening site visit to Piazza Lambrakis. The square is part of the Bolognian neighbourhood Due Madonne, a historical public housing settlement. As popular community space, it was chosen as one of the research sites, alongside sites in Tartu, Estonia, and Amsterdam, The Netherlands, to implement pilot interventions on indoor and outdoor lighting.
On that evening, local residents and the project team came together to celebrate a first milestone. The lighting design team of the Configuring Light research group of the London School of Economics and Political Science and NERI proudly presented the first set of newly installed lights surrounding the square which are part of the new lighting scheme co-designed with the local community.
The smart lighting system ensures less stray light into the neighbouring homes and can be adjusted according to the times of day and seasons. Over the next year, different lighting scenarios will be tested for their effects on the health and wellbeing of the local residents.
Ongoing studies
Also still ongoing as part of the research activities is the ENLIGHTENme study which aims to establish how indoor lighting affects the health and wellbeing of older citizens, particularly the circadian entrainment in older people. Here it was highlighted how unique the work is in terms of process but also scope. It will be the largest international study of its kind.
The project team will now return to their tasks with a renewed focus and looks forward to moving towards first results until meeting again in person in October 2024.
Find out more about the ENLIGHTENme Project >>
The ENLIGHTENme project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement no. 945238.
Source: ENLIGHTENme project website – www.enlightenme-project.eu/
Photos: ©LUCI Association; ©ENLIGHTENme Project
