Toward a globally representative dataset of personal daylight exposure
This project aims to enable researchers in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to measure real-world daylight exposure using a harmonized, high-quality protocol following Guidolin et al. (2024). This protocol has already been tested in a range of contexts, including Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, Turkey, Ghana and Costa Rica. We now wish to expand on this effort to build and further develop capacity in this group of collaborators from LMIC countries and sharpen the data collection efforts to ensure data quality.
In addition, through a micro-grant programme, this project will support novel local teams in collecting one week of daylight and light-at-night exposure data from 30 participants per site. The project directly contributes to the Daylight Academy’s mission by advancing understanding of daylight exposure patterns in diverse regions of the world and promoting equitable global participation in daylight research. LMICs are often neglected in research, and data from these regions will facilitate the development of a more globally applicable understanding of daylight exposure.
The project will be a first step in enabling the development of a large light exposure data set.
Lead and Team
Prof. Manuel Spitschan, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics & Technical University of Munich, Germany (Lead)
Dr Oliver Stefani, Center for Integrated Building Technology, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Switzerland
Dr Christine Blume, Centre for Chronobiology, University Psychiatric Clinics Base, Switzerland
Dr Lenka Maierova, Centre for Energy Efficient Buildings, Czech Technical University, Prague, Czech Republic
Dr Jan-Frieder Harmsen, Institute for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Germany
Ass. Prof. Altug Didikoglu, Department of Neuroscience, Izmir Institute of Technology, Türkiye
Dr Kwadwo Owusu Akuffo, Department of Optometry and Visual Science, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Ghana
Adj. Prof. Andrea Sancho Salas, M.Arch, School of Architecture, University of Costa Rica