Dusts Institute

Jutta-Steier Park at nigh; a habitat shaped by light

Jutta-Steier Park is already an important refuge for nocturnal insects. Its existing lighting conditions including partial night-time darkness allow many species to remain active, feed, and navigate through the night.

But even low levels of artificial light can disrupt these fragile ecosystems. Many nocturnal insects, especially moths, are highly sensitive to specific parts of the light spectrum. Short wavelengths, particularly ultraviolet and blue light strongly attract them, pulling them away from their natural behaviors such as pollination, feeding, and reproduction.

With Licht für Vielfalt, we work directly with this phenomenon.
Instead of adding new infrastructure, we transform the existing park lighting through a minimal, reversible intervention.

Special optical filters are temporarily attached to the park’s lamps. These filters selectively remove short wavelengths from the light spectrum, significantly reducing its attraction to nocturnal insects, while maintaining visibility and safety for visitors.

The result is a shift in how light behaves in the environment,
from attracting and disturbing → to coexisting and supporting.

This intervention invites us to reconsider a simple question:
What if urban lighting didn’t only serve humans but also respected the rhythms of other species?

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📍 Jutta-Steier Park
📅 9.4.–10.5.2026

Ein Projekt im Rahmen der Klima Biennale Wien
supported by Wirtschaftsagentur Wien

Vienna