The International Commission on Illumination (CIE) oversees a wide range of activities in the field of light and lighting. These initiatives include not just technical work but also educational activities, such as tutorials and workshops, designed to support the larger lighting community, including academics and professionals.
For quite some time, CIE has maintained a Joint Technical Committee - JTC 18 (D3/D4) dedicated to lighting education chaired by Mandana Khanie.
CIE is especially committed to supporting young researchers in the field of light and lighting science. Through various initiatives, CIE provides opportunities for Master’s and PhD students to gain valuable experience and connect with the broader lighting community.
One of these initiatives includes awarding outstanding research. Every two years, at its biennial conferences, CIE recognises excellence in research through prestigious awards, including the CIE Best Paper, Best Student Paper, and Best Poster Awards. The Best Paper Award honors the most exceptional oral presentation, the Best Student Paper Award acknowledges the top research paper presented by a student, and the Best Poster Award recognizes the most innovative and impactful poster presentation. In addition to the awards, CIE also offers workshops focused on advancing global lighting education and networking opportunities to help young researchers engage with CIE leadership and their peers.
CIE also offers special rates for students in many CIE events, making participation more accessible to the next generation of lighting professionals and researchers. One such event is the CIE 2025 Conference, which provides numerous opportunities for students to engage with the international lighting community.
Keep an eye out for more announcements about this new CIE initiative through the CIE Website, our Newsletter and LinkedIn.
CIE Standing Panel on Education
CIE also established a Standing Panel focused on educational matters. This panel has been operating since 2024, with the aim of enhancing educational initiatives in the field of light and lighting. The chair of the standing panel is Prof. Dr. Luoxi Hao, CIE Vice-President Education.
Events organized by the CIE Standing Panel on Education will be posted on this page
The CIE Education Workshop "Lighting Education Across Borders: Insights from Europe and Asia" held on 13 June 2025 marked the first official educational activity organised by the CIE Standing Panel on Education and launched a new series of initiatives in lighting education.
The workshop featured keynote talks by two distinguished professors: Prof. Dr. Hao Luoxi, CIE Vice-President Education, from Tongji University (China), and Prof. Balázs Vince Nagy from the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (Hungary). Representing educational perspectives from Asia and Europe, they shared their teaching experiences and insights into lighting and optics education, focusing on how lighting is taught across different institutional and regional contexts.
The session was opened by Tony Bergen, CIE Vice-President Technical, who gave a brief introduction to CIE, welcomed participants and highlighted the importance of strengthening educational efforts within the CIE community.
Targeted primarily at educators in the field of light and lighting, the workshop aimed to foster engagement with CIE’s educational activities and strengthen the link between academic teaching and industry needs. Following the keynotes, a 30-minute interactive panel discussion invited questions and discussion from the global lighting education community.
If you missed the live event or wish to revisit the presentations and discussion, the full recording is now available on our Viemo channel HERE.