Senior Lighting Scientist Leora Radetsky’s first memory of working in the field of illumination is burning the midnight oil and even pulling some all-nighters working on software simulations during a lighting design internship her junior year at the University of Colorado/Boulder. If possible, though, Leora arranged things to accommodate a new hobby far removed from the illumination lab: rooting for the Denver Broncos. Describing herself as a “huge NFL fan,” Leora rarely watches TV unless football is on and her college crush on the Broncos continues to this day – albeit now cheering from her home in Buffalo Bills territory or the DLC’s headquarters in New England Patriots nation.

Leora got an initial glimpse of the organization while consulting with DLC staff as a research scientist at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s (RPI) Lighting Research Center, and later joined the DLC in 2019. Her early work at the LRC in roadway applications as well as effects of light in horticultural grow applications helped inform the basis for evaluating LED products.  Drawn by a desire to make a positive difference in the lighting industry through market transformation, Leora now provides scientific input for the DLC’s various technical requirements with an emphasis on lighting quality, controlling glare, and developing metrics for lighting performance, giving her a welcome opportunity to work on a wide array of lighting and energy projects. The “aha moments” keep coming, she says.

In addition to working at RPI, Leora’s prior experience includes providing professional development education at a prominent lighting software company. Her educational background includes a Master’s in Lighting from RPI and a Bachelor of Science in Science/Emphasis in Illumination earned in Colorado. With over 20 years of lighting industry experience, Leora is Lighting Certified by the National Council on Qualifications for the Lighting Professions (NCQLP), and a member of the Illumination Engineering Society (IES) and the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers (ASABE).

When not shouting at her TV during football season or researching better ways to illuminate indoor and outdoor commercial spaces, Leora is apt to be hiking and kayaking with family in upstate New York’s Adirondack Mountains, or ambling through art museums – occasionally making the short trip to western Massachusetts to visit her favorite: the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass MoCA).