We work across design, research and curated experiences to deepen the understanding of night as a complex system shaped by ecological processes, astronomical conditions, human health, culture, policy, and place. Our practice brings together the many conversations surrounding artificial light after dark, creating space for both critical inquiry and responsible design solutions.

Lightbahn is a space to slow down, look outward, and reconsider how the environments we illuminate exist within the larger nocturnal world. If you care about design that extends beyond the built environment and into the natural one, you are in the right place.

People.

Chetna Misra

  • Chetna Misra, B.Arch, MBArch, MIst.

    Trained as an architect, Chetna worked for nearly a decade as an architectural lighting designer in Dubai, and Amsterdam, contributing to projects across architecture, landscape, and urban design.

    In 2022, she moved to Canada to pursue graduate studies in UX research and design, where she was introduced to design thinking and systems-based approaches to complex problems. This perspective led her to examine lighting beyond individual projects and consider its cumulative impact on cities, ecosystems, and the night sky.

    Lightbahn emerged from this intersection of disciplines, bringing together lighting design and systems thinking to address light pollution as a systemic issue and expand public engagement with the night sky.  

    Through Lightbahn, Chetna also hosts stargazing events in the Canadian capital region, giving people access to unpolluted dark skies. These events also form the basis of her research, exploring how experiencing a truly dark sky can change people’s relationship with artificial light. For most people, a dark sky is something they have never seen, and that, she believes, is part of the problem.

    She writes occasionally about light, darkness, and the nocturnal environment on Substack.