Light When You Need It
My concept is a flashlight borrowing station designed to provide visitors with temporary personal lighting while protecting the natural darkness of state parks. I came up with this idea after reading about Toronto Tool Library. The stations would be placed throughout the park in convenient and accessible locations, such as parking lots, trail entrances and exits, restrooms, visitor centers,etc. The idea is intended for visitors who may unexpectedly remain in the park after sunset, underestimate how long a hike will take, or feel uncomfortable navigating back to their vehicle or campsite in complete darkness. Instead of installing permanent lighting throughout the park, visitors would be able to borrow a flashlight only when they need one.
To access a flashlight, the visitor would use a park app to scan a QR code on the station, which would unlock an available compartment. Once the flashlight is removed, the system would register it as being in use. Each flashlight would also contain a geolocation/ tracking system range around the park. If a visitor begins traveling outside of the approved area the flashlight could provide a warning like a vibration or flashing signal, reminding them that it needs to be returned.
This feature could help reduce the number of flashlights that are accidentally or intentionally taken from the park. Because visitors may finish their trip at a different location than where they started, the system would allow flashlights to be returned to any station within the park. Each station would contain designated return compartments with sensors that recognize when a flashlight has been placed back inside and mark it as returned making the system more flexible system
The concept has a couple of challenges. like the cost of producing and maintaining the stations, replacing or charging batteries, repairing stolen or damaged flashlights, etc. Park employees may also have to regularly redistribute flashlights between stations to make sure each location remains stocked. My concept tries to explore how a park could provide visitors with a greater sense of safety and community at night without relying on permanent artificial lighting. designed for an on-use basis.
References
Toronto Tool Library. Centre for Social Innovation. (2020, September 15). https://socialinnovation.org/product-service/toronto-tool-library/
