City Lighting and New Urban Spaces
Global climate change is affecting our everyday lives. Our children and their
children to come are the targeted victims – the ones to suffer should we not take
immediate action. Nearly 50 per cent of the world’s population lives in cities.
The growing urbanisation demands new and more effective methods of achieving sustainable
city planning, innovative engineering, and an approach to urban design and place-making
that will accommodate the rapid growth. Urban design as a multidisciplinary professional
activity plays a key role in facilitating these changes. Until recently climate
change, resulting in flooding, higher sea levels and critical changes in global
weather, was considered as an external risk, like industrial accidents and plane
crashes. Current radical climate change is gradually changing society’s view,
redefining what is to be considered as external risk.
“A further increase in flood risks is expected due to the rise in sea level,
climate change, and further economic and social development. Technical solutions
no longer form the sole answer to this increase. The flood defences in the Netherlands
have been designed to safely withstand high water tables and waves under extreme
conditions. It is generally accepted that these conditions will become more extreme
because of climate change, and that dikes will have to withstand even higher water
tables and wave loads.”
Dutch Dikes and Risk Hikes
Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency
Sustainable city development is more vital than ever, to ensure that technology
can be used to manage climate changes in order to avoid further catastrophic damage.
The megacity described in sci-fi stories maybe not be so far from a reality, if
we consider the rate of urbanisation and the resulting pollution, and higher energy
use. The discussion of climate issues must go hand in hand with consideration
of how cities can be made beautiful. Politicians should not be expected to handle
these issues alone.
Urban designers, planners, architects, geologist, meteorologists and other professionals
related to city development and climate change should be recognised as having
important roles as facilitators for new ideas, methods and political action.
The following questions can kick off the discussion:
a. How can we create beautiful cities while still considering climate issues in
the planning process?
b. How can cities become more enjoyable, functional, permeable and innovative,
using not only hydrogen-drive vehicles, solar-powered heating and environmentally
approved materials, but also new developments in city lighting?
City lighting has an important role in relation to design issues such as readability,
permeability, movement, access, crime reduction, economic structure, environmental
psychology, infrastructure and safety. Treating city lighting purely as street
lighting, as has been done throughout the modern history city development, risks
missing opportunities to create great spaces. In the Nordic countries, with their
long, dark winters, lighting is crucial for people’s wellbeing and cities’ effective
functioning. New technology developed by companies such as Philips addresses the
climate issues and accommodates new innovative city lightning with power-reducing
technology.
“Solid-state lighting based on LEDs is a revolution in the lighting industry,
which offers unique possibilities for city beautification and secures the necessity
of attractive lighting of public spaces. LEDs can adapt automatically to light
levels and the time of day. They offer a vast array of colours and effects, far
beyond the capabilities of conventional lighting. In addition, they are extremely
low-maintenance and long-life, and are becoming increasingly energy-efficient.
LEDs used in street lighting can last up to 10-15 years in continuous
normal use.”
Dexinger, Philips |