As Denmark enters its darkest months, a lighting researcher urges people to reconnect with the natural darkness and learn from those who already embrace it.
Finding Value in Darkness
In Denmark, winter arrives with short days and long nights. Many people find it difficult to adjust, and city streets glow brightly with artificial light. Yet researcher and architect Mette Hvass from Aalborg University believes that people have forgotten how to live with the dark. Her work explores how natural darkness can actually offer comfort, connection, and a sense of calm.
Hvass recently spent the winter of 2024 on Anholt Island, a small and remote island in Kattegat with around 120 residents. The island is one of Denmark’s darkest places and one of a few certified “Dark Sky” areas in the country. The certification means minimal light pollution and carefully maintained conditions that allow starlight to dominate the night sky.
Learning From an Island in the Dark
During her stay on Anholt, Hvass joined locals for walks at night to see how they experience darkness. Over time she realized that darkness there is not something to fear but something to live with. People on Anholt move calmly through it, letting their eyes adjust to the limited light.
She identified four main qualities of darkness that can change how people think about it:
1. It offers a strong sense of relaxation and helps lower stress.
2. It strengthens social bonds when people spend time together in it.
3. It creates new kinds of nature experiences that bright light often hides.
4. It activates other senses since vision plays a smaller role.
These insights show how Danish islanders have turned darkness into something positive, even enjoyable.
Reconnecting With Nature at Night
Hvass believes many Danes avoid outdoor activity in winter simply because it feels too dark to go outside. But on Anholt she learned that the moon provides enough light to move around safely. Once the eyes adapt, new details appear in the landscape. Because of that, she encourages people to take evening walks under the moonlight or try exploring nature trails after sunset.
For Hvass, darkness is not just a lack of light. It is part of natural rhythm. Families, she suggests, can reconnect by going out together at night—walking in a park, along a beach, or through forest paths when the moon is bright.
Balancing Light and Shadow
Although Hvass does not argue for turning off streetlights or removing holiday decorations, she hopes society can develop a better balance. In her view, too much artificial lighting makes it harder to see our surroundings and disrupts natural patterns. It also affects wildlife. Insects lose orientation, and birds can become confused by the glow of city lights.
Reducing unnecessary outdoor lighting helps protect both humans and nature. Observations of the night sky from 2011 to 2022 show that light pollution worldwide has made the sky roughly 7–10 percent brighter each year. The stars are still there, but they have become harder to see.
Darkness as a Shared Resource
Ultimately, Hvass’s work invites people to see darkness as a shared resource. While bright cities symbolize progress, dark areas such as Anholt remind people of how the absence of light can bring balance and well-being. Recognizing these qualities could inspire towns and communities to rethink urban lighting and preserve dark zones where stars remain visible.
In Denmark, this appreciation for darkness aligns with a wider environmental awareness. Preserving darkness does not mean rejecting light, but instead understanding when and how to use it.
Sources and References
The Danish Dream: Anholt Island in Kattegat
The Danish Dream: Best Spas in Denmark for Foreigners
DR: Vi slæber os gennem vintermørket – lysforsker vil have os til at se fire kvaliteter i det
