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Lighting Design for the Built Environment
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Lighting Design for the Built Environment

A special issue of Buildings (ISSN 2075-5309). This special issue belongs to the section "Building Energy, Physics, Environment, and Systems".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 September 2026 | Viewed by 10484

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Geza Fischl

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Construction Engineering and Lighting Science, School of Engineering, Jönköping University, 551 11 Jönköping, Sweden
Interests: lighting design; architecture; human-centric environments; adaptive and sustainable; occupant well-being; lighting technologies; digital twin modeling
Dr. Ronald Gibbons

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
Interests: lighting design; headlamp design; lighting and visibility; visual perception
Dr. Ulrika Wänström Lindh

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Resource Recovery and Building Technology, University of Borås, 50190 Borås, Sweden
Interests: lighting design; spatial perception; visual guidance; human behaviors
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Lighting design for the built environment encompasses the strategic planning and implementation of lighting systems to enhance architectural spaces' functionality, aesthetics, and sustainability. It integrates natural and artificial lighting to address human needs and environmental considerations, ensuring optimal visual comfort, energy efficiency, and spatial quality. Contemporary approaches to lighting design emphasize human-centric principles, recognizing the impact of light on circadian rhythms, mood, and cognitive performance. By aligning lighting with these physiological and psychological needs, built environments can support occupant well-being and productivity. Adaptive and intelligent systems enable dynamic responses to occupant behavior and environmental conditions, optimizing lighting quality while minimizing energy use. This holistic perspective extends to sustainability, where energy-efficient technologies, renewable energy integration, and lifecycle-focused design meet to reduce environmental impacts. Contextual and experiential design enriches lighting strategies, tailoring them to each space's unique architectural typologies, cultural nuances, and functional requirements.

Lighting design for the built environment is thus a multidisciplinary endeavor that bridges architecture, engineering, and human sciences. It transforms spaces into dynamic, adaptive, and sustainable ecosystems that prioritize occupant needs while addressing broader environmental and societal goals.

We invite original research (laboratory, field, and cross-sectional studies), theoretical and experimental work, case studies, communication, and comprehensive review papers for possible publication. Relevant topics for this Special Issue include:

  • Architectural Lighting Design: Enhancing spatial perception, functionality, and aesthetics through strategic lighting design.
  • Smart Lighting Design with BIM and Digital Twins: Designing adaptive systems using BIM and digital twins for real-time optimization.
  • Human-Centric Lighting Design: Prioritizing well-being by addressing circadian rhythms, productivity, and comfort.
  • Sustainable Lighting Design: Implementing energy-efficient, renewable-integrated, and eco-friendly lighting solutions.
  • Urban Lighting Design: Designing safe, efficient, and aesthetically pleasing lighting for public spaces and transportation hubs.
  • Daylighting Design: Maximizing natural light to reduce energy use and enhance biophilic design.
  • Cultural and Heritage Lighting Design: Preserving and enhancing historic and cultural landmarks with sensitive lighting solutions.
  • Lighting design with artificial intelligence

Dr. Geza Fischl
Dr. Ronald Gibbons
Dr. Ulrika Wänström Lindh
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Buildings is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • lighting design
  • architectural lighting
  • urban lighting
  • human-centric lighting
  • sustainable lighting
  • smart lighting
  • digital twin
  • lighting technology
  • artificial intelligence
  • lighting education

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

31 pages, 13376 KB  
Article
Designing Lighting Master Plans in Historical City Centers: A Structured Approach and Case Study from Adana
by Nursel Aydin and Kasım Çelik
Buildings 2026, 16(5), 1030; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings16051030 - 5 Mar 2026
Viewed by 335
Abstract
Urban lighting is a fundamental element of the built environment, enabling the perception of both living and built components of the city at night. In historic city centers, effective lighting strategies play a pivotal role in enhancing visibility, legibility, and continuity while reinforcing [...] Read more.
Urban lighting is a fundamental element of the built environment, enabling the perception of both living and built components of the city at night. In historic city centers, effective lighting strategies play a pivotal role in enhancing visibility, legibility, and continuity while reinforcing cultural identity. This study introduces a typology-based, data-driven framework for developing sustainable lighting master plans tailored to the spatial, morphological, and heritage characteristics of historic urban environments. The methodology was applied to the historic core of Adana (Turkey), a Roman-era urban fabric with multi-layered cultural heritage, including significant assets such as the Tepebağ Mound and its surrounding structures. The proposed five-stage process—comprising analysis, definition, design, planning, and implementation—integrates on-site observations, horizontal illuminance measurements, thematic spatial mapping, and a Lighting Demand Index (LDI) based on six spatial criteria, for which equal weighting was adopted and validated using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Lighting design proposals were developed according to defined typologies, and their compliance with international lighting standards was tested and verified through simulation. The framework provides a structured approach for reintegrating under-illuminated heritage zones into the contemporary nightscape in a sustainable and identity-focused manner, offering practical guidance for municipalities, planners, and lighting designers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lighting Design for the Built Environment)
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18 pages, 4185 KB  
Article
Urban Digital Twins as Tools for Sustainable Lighting Design: The Assessment of NorDark-DT
by Claudia V. López-Alfaro, Seren Dincel, Wajeeha Nasar, Arne Styve, Ute Besenecker and Ricardo da Silva Torres
Buildings 2025, 15(24), 4425; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15244425 - 8 Dec 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 650
Abstract
Reducing light pollution and promoting sustainable lighting practices require new tools that integrate environmental, social, and technical considerations in design processes. Urban Digital Twins are emerging as powerful instruments for this purpose, enabling integrated evaluation of lighting impacts on both people and ecosystems. [...] Read more.
Reducing light pollution and promoting sustainable lighting practices require new tools that integrate environmental, social, and technical considerations in design processes. Urban Digital Twins are emerging as powerful instruments for this purpose, enabling integrated evaluation of lighting impacts on both people and ecosystems. This paper presents an exploratory evaluation of NorDark-DT, a recently developed urban digital twin designed to support the sustainable planning of lighting infrastructure in green urban areas. This exploratory assessment was conducted with master’s students engaged in lighting design practices. Participants performed two task-oriented exercises of planning and comparing lighting configurations after-dark for a site in Uppsala, Sweden. Results show that NorDark-DT effectively facilitates the exploration of alternative lighting solutions within realistic green urban area contexts and encourages reflection on issues such as light pollution, biodiversity, and ecological preservation. Nevertheless, further improvements are required to enhance the user interface, expand analytical capabilities, strengthen integration with professional lighting software, and optimize performance for varying hardware setups. Beyond professional practice, the tool also proved valuable for educational purposes by promoting interdisciplinary collaboration and broadening students’ understanding of sustainability in lighting design. Overall, this study provides an initial step in a usability assessment of NorDark-DT, confirming its potential to support environmentally responsible, socially aware, and well-informed lighting interventions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lighting Design for the Built Environment)
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33 pages, 4421 KB  
Article
Optimizing User Distributions in Open-Plan Offices for Communication and Their Implications for Energy Demand and Light Doses: A Living Lab Case Study
by Sascha Hammes and Johannes Weninger
Buildings 2025, 15(19), 3458; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15193458 - 24 Sep 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 799
Abstract
Open-plan offices have established themselves as economically efficient working environments and promote communication. Zoned lighting concepts have proven to be particularly energy-efficient and are determined by the respective occupancy profile. Due to their size, open-plan offices usually have very different levels of daylight [...] Read more.
Open-plan offices have established themselves as economically efficient working environments and promote communication. Zoned lighting concepts have proven to be particularly energy-efficient and are determined by the respective occupancy profile. Due to their size, open-plan offices usually have very different levels of daylight availability depending on their position in the room, which affects the light doses per workstation. It is unclear what influence the distribution of users in the room has on the respective target values. This study therefore examines the effects of a variation in the spatial distribution of users in a real open-plan office regarding the three target values of communication distances, daily light doses, and artificial light energy requirements. Statistical methods are used to examine how a user distribution optimized for one target variable affects the other target variables. Since optimizing user distribution is an NP-hard combinatorial problem, heuristic methods are used. The results show that optimized user distribution improves only one target variable. There are no consistently strong correlations between the optimization of communication distances, energy savings, and achievable daily light doses. The work thus contributes to the holistic design of sustainable, user-centered working environments. This research is an example of a living lab case study with optimization-based modeling, emphasizing its exploratory nature rather than controlled experimental inference. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lighting Design for the Built Environment)
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27 pages, 10580 KB  
Article
Effects of Colour Temperature in Classroom Lighting on Primary School Students’ Cognitive Outcomes: A Multidimensional Approach for Architectural and Environmental Design
by Bo Gao, Yao Fu, Jian Gao and Weijun Gao
Buildings 2025, 15(16), 2964; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15162964 - 21 Aug 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 6614
Abstract
Primary school students, as the main users of classrooms, are directly affected by the lighting environment, which not only affects their visual comfort but also their cognitive performance. This study investigated the effects of different correlated colour temperature (CCT) levels in classroom lighting [...] Read more.
Primary school students, as the main users of classrooms, are directly affected by the lighting environment, which not only affects their visual comfort but also their cognitive performance. This study investigated the effects of different correlated colour temperature (CCT) levels in classroom lighting on the cognitive performance of primary school students based on a multidimensional evaluation combining physiological signals (EEG and EDA) and subjective assessment. In this study, 53 subjects aged 10–13 years old from a primary school in Anshan City were used in a controlled experiment under five CCT conditions (3000 K, 4000 K, 5000 K, 6000 K, and 7000 K) at a constant illumination level of 500 lx. EEG and skin conductance (SC) signals were collected and subjective perceptions of visual comfort and fatigue were assessed while cognitive tasks were carried out. The results showed that students performed best cognitively at a colour temperature of 4000 K, with the lowest EEG absolute power (AP) (p < 0.01) and highest comfort (p < 0.05). Females were more sensitive to colour temperature changes and showed better cognitive performance in cooler colour temperature conditions, while male students performed better in warmer light conditions (p < 0.01). The above findings suggest that optimising the CCT of classroom lighting enhances students’ cognitive functioning and comfort, providing empirical support for lighting design guidelines in educational environments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lighting Design for the Built Environment)
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32 pages, 6860 KB  
Article
Participatory Drawing Methodology for Light in Architecture: Drawing Experienced Space
by Ulrika Wänström Lindh
Buildings 2025, 15(13), 2278; https://doi.org/10.3390/buildings15132278 - 28 Jun 2025
Viewed by 1032
Abstract
Visual techniques can capture information about visual experiences in ways that differ from speaking and writing. This article examines drawing as a data collection method in architectural lighting research. Lighting design is a rapidly growing profession, and there is a need to build [...] Read more.
Visual techniques can capture information about visual experiences in ways that differ from speaking and writing. This article examines drawing as a data collection method in architectural lighting research. Lighting design is a rapidly growing profession, and there is a need to build research knowledge of people’s spatial experience of lit environments and to develop methods that capture it. Based on a study in which 16 participants’ experiences of different light scenarios were collected through sketches, semantic rating scales, and deep interviews, the participants drew the boundaries of what they experienced as “the room” and spatial directions inside it. In this study, the 64 sketches were compared in different combinations to detect patterns. The results showed that this drawing method worked well for everybody, both those with and those without professional drawing experience. This method, named Drawing Experienced Space, facilitated finding words and expressions for the experiences of participants, especially for those without training. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lighting Design for the Built Environment)
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