The editors at green design website Inhabitat believe society needs to pursue energy-efficient lighting alternatives to secure a sustainable future — and they're doing their part to make this happen. In order to showcase the potential of LED lighting, Inhabitat has teamed up with lighting brand Philips to launch the first ever Bright Ideas Lighting Design Competition.
Editors are asking designers to submit examples of inspiring eco-friendly lamps that make smart use of materials, and are designed to work with low-energy LED replacement bulbs like Philips AmbientLED.
"Since LED bulbs are low heat, this is a great excuse to get creative with other materials that might be off-limits with traditional incandescent bulbs," said an editor.
Clockwise from top: Jill Fehrenbacher, Sam Grawe, Allan Chochinov and Susan Szenasy
Judges include some of the brightest green thinkers and lighting design luminaries including Dwell’s Managing Editor-in-Chief Sam Grawe, founder of Treehugger Graham Hill, Engadget’s Editor-in-Chief Tim Stevens, Metropolis magazine’s Editor-in-Chief Susan Szenasy, co-founder of Core 77 Allan Chochinov, and Inhabitat’s founder and editor-in-chief Jill Fehrenbacher, Managing Editor Mike Chino, and writer / resident lighting expert Lea Bogdan. They will select 20 luminous finalists based upon aesthetics, creativity, sustainability, practicality, and commercial viability.
Entries will be accepted until midnight May 22 and finalists will be announced on May 30 through online public voting. The winners will then be unveiled on June 8.
All of the winning designs will be showcased on Inhabitat to an international audience of millions of design enthusiasts. In addition, the judges' winner will receive $1000, and the Reader's Choice winner will receive $500. The third place winner will receive $250, and all six winners including three runners up will get a Philips Ambient LED bulb.
According to the USGBC, buildings account for 40% of the United States’ carbon footprint, and electric lighting consumes a significant portion of the energy used to power U.S. buildings. LED bulbs currently available on store shelves can be five times more energy-efficient than their incandescent counterparts, and they can last for up to 25,000 hours.
