World Design Capital Taipei 2016 reveals prestigious keynote speaker lineup for trailblazing International Design Policy Conference

The International Design Policy Conference aims to ignite international dialogue about how to integrate design thinking into public policy and shape the future of global cities. The panel will discuss critical issues at the forefront of current debates on design, including its social impact, effective design policy, future living, and the sustainability of cities.

The panel will include Mayor of Helsinki Jussi Pajunen, who oversaw Helsinki's successful bid for the WDC title in 2012 and has a keen understanding of the impact that design can have on citizens' lives. The Design Driven City, a two-year program implemented by Mayor Pajunen's city government to ensure the continuing legacy of the WDC Helsinki 2012, has been widely celebrated.

Julia Kloiber, Rama Gheerawo, Jocelyn Wyatt, Kazuo Tanaka, and Shikuan Chen will also be present at the conference, lending their insights into designing for a better society. Kloiber is a German designer and activist who works for the Open Knowledge Foundation in Germany; she is also a prominent advocate for social change through open data, and leads civic tech hackathons around the world. Gheerawo is leader of the Age & Ability Research Lab of the Helen Hamlyn Centre for Design, whose work revolves around socially inclusive, people-centered design for the elderly.

Jocelyn Wyatt is the Co-Lead and Executive Director of IDEO.org, a nonprofit design organization that designs products, services, and experiences to improve the lives of people in poor and vulnerable communities, and runs programs to train other organizations to do the same. Kazuo Tanaka is president of GK Design Group Incorporated, a comprehensive freelance design office founded in Japan in 1952, which has produced signs, maps, and other creations for multiple public city transport systems. Shikuan Chen is Vice President of Experience Design at Compal Electronics Inc., where he heads a team of 200 design experts, and Board Director for the International Council of Societies for Industrial Design (Icsid). Chen also sits on the International Advisory Board of the World Design Capital Taipei 2016.

"The International Design Policy Conference is an opportunity for Taiwan to forge lasting bonds with the global community that will help secure an innovative path of development for our cities," says Pei-ni Beatrice Hsieh, Commissioner of Taipei' Department of Cultural Affairs, who will be hosting the conference. "As part of the legacy of the World Design Capital Taipei 2016, we hope this conference will be a fruitful exchange of cutting-edge ideas and knowledge about the integration of design into urban life."

The conference will be held on the weekend of 15 and 16 October, at the Taipei International Convention Center. For further information, or to register for the conference, go to http://topic.cw.com.tw/forum/2016WDC/.

Other major events in October include the International Design House Exhibition, which will be on display at the Songshan Cultural and Creative Park from Thursday, October 13, until Sunday, October 30; the International Design Week Forum, which will be held at the Taipei Fine Arts Museum on Monday, October 17, and Tuesday, October 18; and the Network of Cities Meeting, an invitation-only event which will be held on Wednesday, October 12, and Thursday, October 13. For more information on WDC Taipei 2016 events, visit the official website (http://wdc2016.taipei/) or follow on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/taipeidesign/).

High and low res images, along with caption details and supporting documents can be downloaded here: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/j08e0132lsxteho/AAB2j3GAqChk1XI8ubCvXjqWa?dl=0.

About WDC Taipei 2016

"Adaptive City -- Design in Motion" was Taipei City's core concept in its 2015 application to host World Design Capital 2016. How can we apply innovative "design thinking" practices to overcome the constraints that limited resources place on our city's development, pursue continual change in our urban governance, create happiness in the lives of our citizens--providing them with a better quality of life in a more livable, forward-looking city? These are the goals for Taipei City. 2016 marks the beginning of an evolution for Taipei, where we will take advantage of the potential in change by "Engaging Communities," "Connecting Information," and "Revitalizing the City." For more information on WDC Taipei 2016, visit the official website http://wdc2016.taipei/en/, or follow on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/taipeidesign/.

About World Design Capital

World Design Capital® (WDC) is designated by Icsid every two years to recognize a city's innovative use of design for economic, social and cultural development and to showcase effective design-led urban revitalization strategies that other cities can benefit from. Past cities to hold the WDC title include Torino (Italy) in 2008, Seoul (South Korea) in 2010, Helsinki (Finland) in 2012, and Cape Town (South Africa) 2014. Taipei (Taiwan) is this year's WDC, and Mexico City has just been named WDC 2018. For more information, please visit http://www.worlddesigncapital.com.

About the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design
The International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid) is an international non-governmental organization (INGO) founded in 1957 that promotes the profession of industrial design. Icsid recently approved a name change, World Design Organization, to be implemented and celebrated during its 60th anniversary in 2017. Icsid advocates industrial design driven innovation that creates a better world, engaging our more than 140 member organizations in collaborative efforts and carrying out international programming—World Design Capital®, World Design Impact Prize, World Industrial Design Day, and Interdesign. Icsid has United Nations Special Consultative Status. For more information, please visit http://www.icsid.org/.  

Related Links

http://www.worlddesigncapital.com