SDIF 2024 Sketch Video
We are thrilled to present our sketch video showcasing the vibrant moments from the 2024 Seoul International Design Forum, held on November 27, 2024, at DDP in Seoul.
We are thrilled to present our sketch video showcasing the vibrant moments from the 2024 Seoul International Design Forum, held on November 27, 2024, at DDP in Seoul.
Universal Design City Paradigm for a Better Urban Future
The term “Universal Design” is a philosophy about “designing for everyone”, which means designing products, buildings, cities, information, services, etc. to be used by as many as users as possible in a safe and equitable manner, regardless of users’ gender, age, language, status of disability, level of knowledge, etc.A vivid review of the SDIF 2025
The 2025 Seoul Design International Forum I attended recently was an event that gave me tremendous inspiration. It was actually my first time attending this year, so I was curious about what the atmosphere would be like, but once I was there, I realized it is a forum that anyone interested in design should definitely experience.
Going Public
The public realm is not a default condition, but rather something which must be actively produced, designed, and constructed. How we design it has the capacity to transform how we identify ourselves as part of a collective society, how we form common values and common ground, and how the notion of “the public” is constituted—to design for the public realm is also to design a public through that realm. Today, it is a site of overlapping constituencies, interests and stakeholders that create a layered set of complex interests constantly in negotiation. Because design is inherently specific, we value this specificity to make meaning, engage audiences, and create place. In this lecture, J. Meejin Yoon will present projects that address the public realm as a site of negotiation and formation, where placemaking, activation and design intersect to produce the “urban alchemy” of the contemporary city. This lecture will demonstrate how design has the capacity to engage the public and transform the public realm.SDIF 2024 Main Event <Reflections on Mr. Criag Kiner's Speech>
The Seoul Design International Forum featured many insightful programs, and among them, I was particularly inspired by the presentation “Dongdaemun Design Plaza: Trends and the Future” by Craig Kiner, Principal of Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA). This year marks the 10th anniversary of DDP (Dongdaemun Design Plaza), designed by Zaha Hadid and the ZHA team. DDP stands as a landmark of Seoul, featuring a futuristic curved design located at the heart of the city.City, Design and AI
What should a city in the age of artificial intelligence aspire to be and what value should it provide to its citizens? This talk provides a comprehensive view of how artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are redefining how cities function and transforming the lives of their citizens on a deeper level. Today's rapidly evolving artificial intelligence is more than just a technology, it's revolutionizing society as a whole. However, how these changes are specifically realized in urban environments and how they should be integrated into the daily lives of citizens is still an area that needs further exploration. This talk will explore how artificial intelligence technologies can substantially improve urban environments and provide meaningful value to both individuals and communities. It will analyze the current state of AI's development and future possibilities, exploring not the technology itself, but the design potential of the technology - how it can evolve to focus on human connection, empathy, and convenience. Furthermore, it will share insights and lessons we can learn from examples of cities and countries around the world that are already using AI to revolutionize the way cities function. This talk will provide an in-depth discussion of how the future of AI can transform our cities into smarter, more livable spaces, and point the way forward for creating citizen-centric cities. In this new era driven by AI, cities need to rethink their role as platforms to enhance the lives of their citizens, not just adopt technology.
Seoul Design International Forum 2022
Based on the vision to “Create Value through Design,” the Seoul Metropolitan Government implements its various design policies ranging from the macro plans for landscape to the micro plans for service improvement. To ensure that citizens can fully savor the attractiveness of natural environment and spaces across the city and enjoy thoughtful care and respect, the role of design in the future society will be even greater. This forum held with the theme, “DESIGN x Seoul : How Does Design Enrich Our Future,” will learn how design serves as an engine for enhancing values of cities through various examples of cities. Also, it will review how citizens in those cities enjoy these value.[Abstract] Designing Cities for People & Planet: From Vision to Impact
• Brief introduction of our mission at Gehl (Making Cities for People), incl. working for cities and communities to be equitable, healthy and sustainable places for all. • Argue why urban design must shift from infrastructure-led models to human-centered approaches and call for holistic approaches that not only aim at good design of public spaces but also contribute to greater societal goals. • Today a stronger focus on “all life”/our planet the past couple of years to enable climate action and impact, though our approach to planning and design and “old” principles remains the same and are just as relevant today. • Across the world, we’re in a time of poly-crisis (climate change, energy transition, urban security) and since 70% of the world’s population will be living in cities by 2050, we need a new urban approach. • Helle will argue about the need for climate-aligned urbanism and that we at Gehl dare to believe that averting the worst of climate change can bring out the best in cities. • Illustrate how this will impact and change the way residents move, consume and live – with more time in active mobility together, more sharing of resources and more shared spaces.
The Direction of the Design in The Age of New Normal ‘To Empathize with Costumers and Design New Connections through Design Thinking’
Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social systems that operated through human connections fell into sudden stagnation. The free and flexible daily life of citizens was controlled and limited, and the operating speed of the existing system was significantly lowered, increasing the inconvenience and difficulties of citizens. In the midst of the COVID-19 crisis that no one expected and could not prepare for, members of society are showing some results by designing and implementing devices that can promote social connection in order to break through the disconnection and resulting inefficiency. It is necessary to think about the impact of these attempts on the lives of citizens and the sustainability of these connections.[Special Interview] Birgit Mager
Do you have any advice or words of wisdom for Korean students aspiring to become leaders in service design? If you would like to be a leader in service design, you should try to be a tree-shaped person. What is a tree-shaped person? You have to have deep roots and you have to have many branches. So the deep roots are the roots in design research. You need to have a good understanding on how to understand a complex system, how to visualize a complex system.
A Study on the Application of Universal Design for Urban Mobility of Buses - Seoul Design Foundation
The 'Universal Design Application Study for Urban Mobility of Buses', a collaborative study by Seoul Design Research Center’s TBS Research Center, Professor Young-Jun Koh of Seoul National University of Science and Technology and Professor Min-Hyeon Choi of Sungshin Women's University, started in June 2016 is expected to run until December 2016. The study aims to apply universal design principles to buses, bus stops, and bus operation information, establish a future bus service scenario study, and to study universal design in smart bus usage information. The ultimate goal is to generate universal design guidelines for buses and bus stops, universal design guidelines for operation information services, and near-future bus service scenarios. This study was based on preliminary studies including, 'Criteria for standard low-floor bus model (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, 2016)', 'Accessible bus stop design guidance (Transport for London, 2014)', 'Japanese standard specification low-floor bus guideline', 'LinkNYC (New York, USA) as well as 'Maps related to domestic and foreign bus use'. In order to identify the applicable factors, domestic and foreign bus usage surveys were conducted, by visiting Seoul, Japan (Fukuoka, Kyoto, Osaka), and London, UK. Bus stop facilities, and operation information at bus stops were the subject of the survey. In the case of domestic buses, it was found that the vertical handle in front of the wheelchair user area of the bus creates difficulties for wheelchair movement. The wheelchair lift operation sequence was difficult to understand as the instructions were only given in text. It was found that electric wheelchairs could be dangerous because they could not be fixed to the bus.The Innovative City for the Next Generation(the MZ Generation): Advancing Towards Ultra Connectivity and the Real World
This forum is an inspiring time for myself as well. Until now, we carried out discussions under the theme of the types of spaces that can act as the main characters and about relevant humanizing activities. In this session, we will talk about the perspective where we are the protagonists. Do you happen to know this song? ‘I love to play all day. Come join me, all my friends’. Do you know what it is? Yes. It is Pororo. What would have happened if we had children in this space? They would have disappeared as soon as we started because they would have said ‘This is not fun. I’m bored’. When we think back on our childhood, children could play all day long wherever they were as long as they had three things. The three things are playground, toys and friends.
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