LUMINOUS COMMONS : Regenerative Eco Light
Misha Joshi
Anastasia Kravchenko
I am Akhil Gaur, founder and consultant at Kaash Light Engineers. An engineer by training, I have been working with light since 2011, focusing on its role in human experience and ecological well-being. My work spans technical lighting design, spatial storytelling, and systems thinking—applying light as a tool to foster healthier urban and architectural environments.
Over the years, I’ve collaborated on cultural and architectural projects such as the restored Flying Saucer in Sharjah and the inaugural Sharjah Architecture Triennial, contributing lighting interventions that merge aesthetics, ecology, and public engagement.
Kaash is now a collaborative studio exploring regenerative lighting strategies for cities and commons. Our team combines engineering, ecological research, and participatory design—driven by the belief that light should heal, not harm.
Alongside me, Misha Joshi, trained product designer and light explorer. She brings creativity and depth across residential, hospitality, retail, and commercial lighting projects, blending beautiful design with functional aesthetics. An enthusiastic conversationalist, Misha easily turns strangers into friends, making collaboration a joy.
Anastasiia Kravchenko, a Ukrainian refugee rebuilding her life in mainland Europe, is a trained interior designer and 3D software expert. A thoughtful creator, Anastasiia transforms ideas into beautiful, meaningful spaces, bringing resilience and fresh perspectives to our work.
LUMINOUS COMMONS reimagines light as a regenerative force_offering a modular, sensor-driven system that respects circadian rhythms, ensures safety, preserves nocturnal life, and fosters social connection.
Responding to over-illumination, environmental degradation, and social disconnection, this proposal blends ecological ethics with human-centric design. Conventional lighting systems fuel energy waste, biodiversity loss, and detachment from natural cycles. LUMINOUS COMMONS introduces an adaptive approach that flows with human presence, ambient light, and ecological sensitivity.
The system is crafted from recycles and bio-based materials, featuring autonomous solar modules, tunable lighting, and smart chips for digital monitoring_designed for long resilience and local repairability. Following dark-sky principles, it limits blue-spectrum light and reduces trespass into homes_while enabling safe, shared spaces through co-created rhythms.
The concept grew from Kaash Light Engineers enduring passion for light, design and technology. It responds to global crisis: energy shortages, disappearing dark skies, rising sleep disorders, and a 30% drop in pollinator-driven crop yields across Europe in 2023_much linked to artificial light. An in-house study on adaptive urban lighting showed a 50% energy cut with increased safety, validating responsive luminance.
We envision LUMINOUS COMMONS as an open source toolkit, participatory prototype and pedagogical method for communities, designers and municipalities. It merges spatial design, environmental justice, and digital craft into a shared infrastructure for ecological coexistence.