Sustainability + Equity in Lighting

The practice of sustainable lighting is increasingly understood to encompass both environmental equity and social equity. Considerations of environmental impact, circular economy, life cycles, human wellness, carbon impact, material transparency, community impact, and equitable accessibility have grown over the past decade as research builds around new and developing technologies. How, then, can IES members better engage these considerations in their professional practices? The IES Sustainability Committee will soon be the first organization in the industry to officially recognize the confluence of social and environmental justice with sustainable lighting practice. In a meaningful redefinition for industry standards, the updated IES Recommended Practice will expand the scope of sustainable lighting beyond energy efficiency and light pollution prevention, defining sustainable lighting as “serving the qualitative visual needs of people for the equitable benefit of society and the natural environment.” In this webinar, a panel of experts, researchers, and practitioners spanning an intersection of lighting, interior design, and architecture will discuss how to embed sustainability and light justice further in industry standards, as well as how IES membership may identify opportunities to apply standards around environmental and social equity in their individual and professional practices. This webinar will be an important conversation that acknowledges behind-the-scenes work which is already well underway, both within the IES and without.