“Rethinking Future City Night Walk”
2020.08.28 東悟子
The Lighting Detectives’ main activities revolve around fieldwork. During this salon, we split into groups to discuss what kinds of night walk surveys are possible during the COVID-19 pandemic, and what we should be observing now.
Our third salon held online
Each team discussed potential areas for the night walk survey. The Nagoya team proposed a streetlight investigation
Since the end of March, we’ve been working with the night walk survey planning committee, SQUAD, to explore what kind of activities the Detectives can pursue even under pandemic restrictions.
Various ideas were proposed, such as solo night walks, video streams of night walks by Chief Mende, virtual night walks, and even group YouTube watch sessions.
In May, we conducted an experiment where each member investigated lighting within a 100-meter radius of their home and shared their findings online. This project turned out to be meaningful, as it revealed both positive aspects and problem areas in each of our residential neighborhoods.
However, since the Lighting Detectives have long focused on gathering for fieldwork as a core activity, we wanted to explore new possibilities. With that in mind, we invited members to submit ideas under the theme “Reimagining Future Night Walk Surveys.” Specifically, we asked what kind of night walk surveys they’d like to try.
Based on similarities in proposed themes and locations, members were grouped into three teams:
- Kansai/Tokai team
- Tokyo’s Old Neighborhoods & Traditional Shopping Streets team
- Tokyo Light Pollution & New Urban Development team
Each group was given 40 minutes to discuss and develop ideas for both the theme and area of their proposed night walk survey. Afterwards, all groups shared their proposals with the full gathering, and we proceeded to decide which night walk surveys would actually be carried out.
The Kansai/Tokai area team proposed investigating the extravagant streetlights in Sakae, Nagoya, and the Midosuji illuminations. The Shopping Street team suggested surveys on the ambient lighting in the traditional neighborhoods of Yanaka and Azabu-Juban—and for some reason, even a cemetery lighting survey. The Light Pollution & New Urban Development team came up with several ideas: a tour of Shibuya’s public restrooms and Miyashita Park, the Toyosu area with its Olympic-related facilities, and the rapidly redeveloping area around Tachikawa Station.
Each survey was to be limited to a maximum of five participants, who could sign up for their preferred location. Unlike typical night walk surveys where around 25 members gather in one location and split into groups for on-site investigation and same-day reporting, this time, participants conducted their surveys on different dates. The results were later shared in an online salon. This format allowed participants to choose locations based on their own interests, giving them more ownership of the experience—and naturally, expectations were high.
In addition to planning these future walks, this salon also featured a member’s presentation on environmentally sensitive streetlighting initiatives on Kozushima Island. Inspired by this, an idea emerged to organize a night-watching tour there once COVID restrictions ease.
The online format of the salon made it easy for everyone to participate comfortably and voice their opinions. Because it lowers barriers to involvement and allows participation from anywhere, we hope to continue hosting salons online even after the pandemic. If you have any ideas for interesting salon topics, feel free to send them to the secretariat. (Noriko Higashi)
Based on the responses from the preliminary survey, the opinions were compiled and teams were organized accordingly.
