The Art of Dark Sky Advocacy:
Getting Clients to See the Light (Responsibly)

Newlin leads strategic marketing initiatives for WE-EF Lighting across the North American market, working with designers and sales partners to deliver high-quality exterior lighting solutions rooted in performance, sustainability, and ecological responsibility. Based in New York City, Newlin has become an advocate for WE-EF’s night-sensitive lighting, leading the process to get WE-EF’s luminaires DarkSky Approved and was one of the architects behind Stellar // Marfa, the inaugural Dark Sky Retreat for designers. Before joining WE-EF, Newlin worked across the AEC industry, leading creative marketing strategy for global architecture firm Perkins&Will, where she crafted brand campaigns about the firm’s work in sustainability, design research, digital practice, and more. She also led the brand refresh and website redesign for Group PMX, a construction project management consultant. As a graduate of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University, Newlin weaves storytelling into her creative process to craft compelling, high-impact campaigns.

As Director of East Coast Sales and Education for WE-EF Lighting USA, Alex works with designers and sales partners to deliver high-quality exterior lighting solutions rooted in performance, sustainability, and ecological responsibility. Based in Southeast Florida, Alex has become an advocate for WE-EF’s night-sensitive lighting through turtle-friendly lighting installations and as was one of the architects of WE-EF’s inaugural Dark Sky Retreat for designers - Stellar Marfa. Before joining WE-EF, she built a career as an architectural lighting designer in New York City, co-founding Sighte Studio and serving as Studio Director at Linnaea Tillett Lighting Design Associates, for which she was recognized as one of Lighting Magazine’s International 40 Under 40 in 2019. Alex has also remained deeply engaged in education and mentorship through teaching at Parsons School of Design and guest lecturing and critiquing at Columbia University and the University of Virginia. Outside of work, Alex enjoys growing a native food forest at home with her family, harvesting bananas, coconuts, and the Queen of all fruits - mangoes.

The co-founder and principal of Sighte Studio, Francesca Bastianini is committed to a practice that folds education, research, and community engagement into design.

Originally from Caracas, Venezuela, Francesca moved to the United States to attend Smith College, studying Theatre and Psychology, followed by a Masters in Psychology from Lesley University. In 2010 Francesca graduated from the MFA lighting program at Parsons.

In addition to her work with Sighte Studio and as a Part-time faculty member at SCE, Francesca is also an active member in the New York Lighting industry and volunteers time with Equity in Lighting, the Designers Lighting Forum of New York (DLFNY), and the Women in Lighting Project.

Julie earned her Bachelor of Science in Industrial Technology from Central Michigan University. She joined DarkSky International in 2024 as the Lighting Program Associate, responsible for the DarkSky Approved Luminaires Program. This provides an opportunity for lighting manufacturers to achieve objective, third-party certification for products that minimize glare, reduce light trespass, and do not pollute the night sky. Before joining DarkSky, Julie worked for more than 20 years in the site furniture industry, drafting product drawings, writing technical specifications and creating product installation guides. She lives in southwest Michigan with her family.

Dr Martin Lupton holds a PhD in Lighting and is one half of Light Collective with over 30 years of experience in the lighting industry. Before founding Light Collective in 2008, he held directorial roles at major international firms (including BDP and Lighting Design Partnership) in the UK. In 2023, Light Collective expanded their global footprint with the addition of Light Collective LATAM. While Light Collective has maintained a high-end portfolio of architectural lighting—ranging from small-scale art installations to massive shopping malls in Kuwait—their true specialty is lighting activism, community building and knowledge curation. They operate at the intersection of light and human connection, using light as an infrastructure for social and professional engagement. Light Collective have been recognised for their innovative approach to both promoting the profession of lighting design and building communities. This includes Lux Persons of the Year (2019), the LIT Award Spotlight Prize (2020) and the Society of Light and Lighting Presidents Medal (2023). Most recently, Light Collective were named in LIGHTING25 as two of the most globally influential people in Lighting 2025 by the Pompeo Group. Light Collective is the founder of the global project Women In Lighting, collaborator on both the darc awards and the 40 under 40 awards and work alongside the Messe Frankfurt shows: Light and Intelligent Building Middle East and North America to curate their education content. They are also co-founders of the experiential darkness workshop, Going Dark in Italy and publishers of the The Collected Light Series of books.

Light Collective is led by Sharon Stammers (MSc in Lighting) and Martin Lupton (PhD in Lighting), each brings 30 years of individual experience in the lighting industry. Before founding Light Collective in 2008, both held directorial roles at major international firms (including BDP and Lighting Design Partnership) in the UK, giving them a rare perspective that blends the corporate/structural needs of the industry with a hands-on boutique consultancy approach. In 2023, they expanded their global footprint with the addition of designer Magali Méndez in Mexico to form Light Collective LATAM.