Get A Grip On Lighting Podcast

Dr. Sam Illingworth is an Associate Professor at Edinburgh Napier University, UK. He is a leading expert in using poetry to develop a dialogue between scientists and non-scientists. Sam write’s books, tweets, blogs, composes poetry, podcasts, creates games and still finds time for running.  If you want to engage your left AND right brain, give this episode a listen.

Mary Beth was the Manager of the GE Lighting Institute in Cleveland, Ohio for 18 years.  She was responsible for the overall operation and curriculum development for this training and education center that hosted over 4000 visitors a year. Mary Beth and Michael and Greg take a little trip down nostalgia lane recalling the days of the Edison Awards and training at the institute. She might be retire...

B.D. is a proven leader and team builder, successfully navigating an ever changing high-tech business climate. He is currently running SaticShield, the country’s leading clean power manufacturing facility and Montana’s most proficient solar company.  You might not have heard about dirty electricity and you probably haven’t thought about the impact of dirty electricity on lighting and electronics a...

 Gail Walker is the founder of Nantucket Lights, an all-volunteer citizen advocacy group recently formed to combat the growing light pollution on Nantucket, the island off the coast of Massachusetts that is a popular summer destination for many. A former litigator for the U.S. Department of Justice, she began working on light pollution issues there after retiring a few years ago. Gail discusses wi...

 Brian Huff is President of Adventure Lighting in Des Moines, Iowa. Brian is your new NAILD Board Member, although this isn’t his first time serving. From the perspective of a family owned lighting distribution business, he gives us his point of view on sales, distribution, sustainable lighting, the future of the replacement process and, of course, his plans while serving on the NAILD board.  Welc...

Hilding Neilson is an interdisciplinary scientist currently working with the David A. Dunlap Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Toronto and is Mi’kmaw from the Qalipu First Nation band. Hilding is working at the intersection of science, astronomy and Indigenous knowledge. He tells us some fascinating Indigenous stories about the constellations, and how many more have bee...

Meet your new NAILD board member. Devin Wall is the President of Louvers International where they manufacture commercial and industrial light fixtures, light fixture components, and do complete plastic fabrication. In this episode, the guys discuss Louvers history in manufacturing lenses, solutions to headaches from poor lighting, and growth in the UV disinfection play including “disinfection thea...

Dr. Tyler Nordgren is an artist, author, astronomer, and night sky ambassador. He holds a Ph. D. in Astronomy from Cornell University where he did work on dark matter as well as a B.A. in Physics from Reed College. In this episode, we discuss the role of his artwork in public education about the night skies, how inhabiting Mars is a longshot with questionable benefits, and you won't want to miss T...

Nam has over 20+ years of experience in technology product development across various industries: Military, Automotive, Medical Devices, and now Lighting. Nam joined Cooper Lighting in 2013. Nam has been working on augmented reality.  This is like Pokemon Go for the lighting industry. It’s going to make sales easier than ever.   https://www.cooperlighting.com/s/lightarchitect/index.html . 

Megan Porter PhD is an Associate Professor in the School of Life Sciences at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.  Her research program is focused on understanding the evolution of animal eye diversity, particularly from a molecular perspective. In this episode, Megan tells us about the vastly different vision perceptions that animals have from humans and the massive impact light pollution has on t...

Enjoy this quick one with your hosts Michael and Greg. The boys talk about how to get back to dark night skies with everything from advocacy to guilt and shame. Could we eventually see enforcement through regulation? The Chinese manufacturers are going to love it! 

Long-time friend of Get A Grip On Lighting, Spencer Miles ruminates on his time on the NAILD Board, what he’s going to do with all his free time now, and where he sees the future of lighting going. Oh - and he was convinced to sell smoke detectors - and it’s going well! 

Douglas Arion, PhD is the founder and director of Mountains of Stars, a public science outreach and education program that engages the public with ‘ environmental awareness from a cosmic perspective ’.  In this episode, Douglas logically explains why all other living creatures are equal to humans. He warns us of the pitfalls of the plethora of satellites that are going to be orbiting earth.  And y...

Alan is Senior Vice President at Satco. Alan is “graduating” from NAILD’s Board of Directors this year. He looks back on his time with the board, the relationships forged, and the opportunities presented. Alan talks about his post-board future with Satco and if you’re ever in Long Island, he would be happy to take you for cold cheese pizza.

Dr. Micah Brodsky is a wildlife veterinarian who focuses on marine animal medicine, research, and conservation and is the Director of Conservation Medicine at Hawaiʻi Marine Animal Response and a lecturer at the University of Hawaiʻi. Dr. Brodsky tells us about the dire consequences of light pollution on Wedgetail Shearwater birds, sea turtles and Monk Seals, to name a few, in Hawai’i.  As he says...

Dan Blitzer is Principal of The Practical Lighting Workshop, founded in 1993. The firm provides consulting services in marketing, strategy, communication, and education and serves both manufacturers and non-commercial clients. You’ll be hard pressed to find someone with more experience in the industry.  He’ll tell you his mother told him to be a teacher but he wanted to be in sales.  Well guess wh...

  Kelly Beatty has been explaining the science and wonder of astronomy to the public since 1974. An award-winning writer and communicator, he specializes in planetary science and space exploration as Senior Editor for Sky & Telescope magazine.  Kelly talks about the lack of blue light detection in most satellites leading to under-reported levels of light pollution, and he touches on the ongoin...

Over the last 17 years Jason has been a leader in providing turn-key lighting retrofits amounting to millions of dollars worth of energy savings that have also garnered millions in incentive money for clients across Ontario, Canada.  Respecting the channel and working to build quality lighting systems for customers, Jason speaks to the LED lighting revolution from the perspective of a unionized el...

Sohana Arni, LC, MIES has had experience in many aspects of the lighting profession. At Cooper Lighting she has held roles in product management, marketing manager, Manager of Architectural Markets over a few architectural brands, and currently is the Director of Marketing and Design for 3D printing.  You probably never thought you’d learn all about acoustic design on the Get A Grip On Lighting Po...

Bettymaya Foott works for the International Dark-Sky Association as Director of Engagement. Preserving dark skies is her life goal and she finds that astrophotography is the most poignant way to express a love for the night, as well as educate about the impacts of light pollution. If you want to take some great photos of the night sky, listen to Bettymaya here for some of the best places to go and...

Angelica Santana holds a Bachelor of Architectural Engineering with a focus in Lighting/Electrical systems from The Pennsylvania State University. Angelica is a lighting designer with CM Kling in Washington DC.  Angelica describes her work as “painting with light” when she goes into a space. As a yoga instructor, she also uses light as an important aspect of meditation. Want to de-stress you or yo...

Matt is the outgoing President of NAILD.  He held down the fort through the pandemic crisis, keeping NAILD thriving over the past 18 months.  You’ll hear about Matt’s own thriving business, plus NAILD’s leading position on Dark Sky education and advocacy. And hey, don’t forget to join NAILD!

Ashley is the Director of Conservation for the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) where she collaborates with advocates and volunteers around the world to help them promote effective uses of outdoor lighting and protect pristine dark skies. Ashley tells us about her work in dark sky awareness and education through the lens of Sensory Ecology.  And listen to her great plumbing analogy for was...

Sandra Vásconez is a senior instructor in the Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering at the University of Colorado, Boulder. She is co-creator and co-director of the Rocky Mountain Lighting Academy.  Education at the Academy is designed for professionals already in the industry.  So, if you want some fresh air and a deep dive into lighting education, head on over to Boulder and learn a...

Dr. Fischer operates The Zoological Lighting Institute, a 501 c(3) dedicated to supporting the sciences of light and life through the arts for animal welfare and wildlife conservation. This one is broad ranging.  What are the five domains of animal welfare?  What is a ZALA station? And why should banks become bird friendly?  To find out, give this episode a listen.