How design shapes our world?

On June 6, on the other side of the world, at the 2024 APEC Co-Creation Forum: Impact of Creative Economies on the Future of Tourism in the APEC region, Shirley Feng, Director General of the China Industrial Design Collaborative Innovation Platform, President of Shenzhen Industrial Design Profession Association, and Executive President of the Shenzhen New Social Stratum Association, gave us an answer with her theme "Design Illuminates the Future of Cities." Using the cities of Shenzhen, Xiongan, and Harbin as examples, she interacted with over 100 forum guests, sharing how creative design empowers the tourism economy and enhances urban development. She painted a picture of a future city illuminated by design and demonstrated how design can become a key force in driving urban development and stimulating the vitality of the tourism economy.

In order to strengthen tourism exchanges and cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region and promote the development of the tourism industry, APEC has been holding tourism ministers' meetings since 2000. The "Co-Creation Forum: Impact of Creative Economy on the Future of Tourism in the APEC Region" is one of the sub-events of the 2024 APEC Tourism Ministers' Meeting, providing an excellent platform to showcase to the world. This forum holds extraordinary significance for China's active advocacy in enhancing the status of tourism cooperation within APEC, advancing the integration of the Asia-Pacific tourism market from multiple perspectives, improving the competitiveness of China's tourism industry, promoting the development of tourism services and trade, and spreading the national tourism image and urban charm of China.

"Design serves as a critical indicator of the competitiveness of a business, a city, and even a economy, while also serving as an expression of cultural roots. This underscores that every city’s unique culture lends itself to distinct tourism characteristics, yet our mission remains uniform: to bring warmth and love to everyone. This, indeed, is the essence of design. "

Shenzhen: the light of design illuminates the path of innovation.

If you reside in Shenzhen, you must have heard the phrase "Once you come, you are a Shenzhener!" From a small fishing village to a global metropolis, from an economic special zone to a pilot demonstration area, from a city of imitations to a city of makers, from being the world's factory to the city of design, Shenzhen welcomes every dream seeker from all corners of the world with open arms and inclusivity. It has also shown countless dreamers the remarkable transformation of Shenzhen, step by step, from a manufacturing hub to a global design center.

Like many dreamers who have come to Shenzhen, Shirley mentioned in her speech that 34 years ago, she arrived in Shenzhen, experiencing the city's fast pace while on the move. Starting as a software engineer, she experienced, participated in, and witnessed the rise and fall of the paging industry. The rapidly evolving mobile phone industry gave birth to industrial design, growing from zero to one. As a result, Huaqiangbei became bustling with activity, and over 80% of the world’s electronic products are now manufactured in Shenzhen.

Our association has been a catalyst in this transformation, and has achieved numerous firsts. Eleven years ago, we forged sister city partnership between Shenzhen and Helsinki, established the Sino-Finnish Design Park. We pioneered the Sino-Finnish model of innovation that progresses from concepts to prototypes, from prototypes to products, and from products to brands. Through a decade of accumulation, we have nurtured nearly 400 projects from aggregation to fission.

We launched the Shenzhen International Industrial Design Fair, providing a global stage for Chinese designers. We've hosted significant events like the Unleash 2019, the China Mass Entrepreneurship and Innovation Week Main Venue in Shenzhen and the FAB 12 - International Fab Lab Conference. These milestones have solidified Shenzhen’s reputation as a city of makers and innovation.

Professor Neil, the founder of FAB LAB, praised Shenzhen as the only city in the world with a complete and irreplaceable innovation chain and industrial chain, solidifying Shenzhen's reputation as a city of makers that captures global attention.

At this year, Our Leader Xi highlighted the importance of improving the modern tourism system, accelerating the development of a strong tourism economy, and promoting high-quality growth of the tourism industry for steady and far-reaching progress. This also points the way for exchanges between China and the global tourism and cultural sectors, offering designers with a wider space to unleash their creativity and inject new energy into the tourism economy.

If you are visiting Shenzhen, you can feel the influence of design subtly shaping the character of this city. From the serene "Mangrove Forest" and “Dameisha Beach” to the cutting-edge DJI Sky City and Huawei Smart Life Pavilion, design is everywhere.

Today, the Sino-Finnish Design Park has become a popular destination for industrial and cultural tourism. It is a place where technology, design, industry, and culture converge and integrate, just as the slogan of the Sino-Finnish Design Park says: "Design, from here to the world."

Design is making our city more beautiful, livable, and intelligent. 

This is far beyond simply a tourism, but transformed into a vibrant modern tech experience, providing a better platform and opportunity for city marketing.

Our association has been continuously promoting the convergence of diverse populations, cultures, and industries in a dynamic context, making design a catalyst for high-quality development not only in Shenzhen, but across China. Design illuminates industries, making cities more visionary and attractive.

Xiongan: the future city, a new chapter in design, depicting the city of the future.

The unique "Shenzhen model" is now expanding from serving the Greater Bay Area to serving the economic belt, extending from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area to the central region, then to the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei area and the northeastern region, spreading across various economic zones and resonating globally.

"I’m keen to utilize the power of design to shape a visionary, warm, hopeful, and human-centered city."

In Xiongan, whether at the only international event in North China focused on industrial design—the Hebei International Industrial Design Week—or the Goldreed Industrial Design Award, which upholds the philosophy of "spreading design value with Eastern wisdom", you can deeply feel why innovation is at the core of Xiongan's DNA. Design has brought an indescribable magic, conveying China's voice in design and its strength in intelligent manufacturing to the world.

For six consecutive years, the Hebei International Industrial Design Week has showcased international cutting-edge design to products with distinct characteristics of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, from industrial design masters to emerging design teams, from consumer electronics to future interactions. It integrates design exhibitions, concept communication, and project matchmaking, creating a diverse, cross-disciplinary, and integrated platform for exchange, highlighting the future-oriented, visionary, and inclusive charm of the city of Xiongan.

Over the past seven years of exploration, Shirley has witnessed how a remarkable city is realized.

Cities are an indispensable part of the tourism, and many cities attract a large number of tourists due to their unique historical and cultural heritage, architectural styles, cuisine, natural scenery, and more. Today, Xiongan, the "City of the Future" under large-scale construction, is giving rise to new forms of tourism. Through the design of Xiongan, the world will come to understand a better version of China.

Harbin: ice and snow design warms the heart of industry.

Last June, we expanded the power of design in the beautiful city Harbin. Spaces such as design studios, design museums, IP innovation FabLab, rural revitalization lab, and design galleries greeted our sight after passing through a fantastical frozen "design gate" on Xuehua East Street in the Songbei District. This is the Harbin Design Center that has nurtured numerous prevailing cultural and creative products and designs.

Heilongjiang Province is striving to develop a new growth pole for the Longjiang ice and snow economy. We pioneered the "Three-Dimensional Empowerment Model" serving as not only a solution but also an industrial innovation.

In her speech, Shirley mentioned that, first, a special industry guidance fund should be established to promote new consumption. Capital empowerment provides the "fuel" for enterprises to transform and upgrade. Secondly, design innovation acts as a catalyst for increasing product value and is pivotal in establishing a brand's competitive edge through the creation of distinctive and proprietary design elements. Ultimately, market empowerment is the "wings" that facilitate the penetration of our products into the mainstream consumer base, ensuring accessibility and widespread adoption.

This strategic approach has catapulted Harbin to the forefront of the economy's most sought-after travel destinations, establishing it as a "top-tier" attraction. The synergy between the "cold ice and snow" and the "hot cultural and creative industries" has not only delivered substantial economic benefits but also fostered a "bi-directional empowerment" between the ice and snow economy and the realm of creative design. This dynamic has invigorated the cultural and tourism sector, ushering in a new era of growth and innovation.

Sixteen years ago, when SIDA was founded, its dream was to "let the world see Chinese design". After 16 years of accumulation, SIDA has expanded from industrial design to urban design, using the power of design to empower cities and creative tourism. And at this moment, it has crossed time and space, establishing a shared resonance with people around the world, becoming a common thread that weaves cities and culture together.

At the end of the speech, Shirley mentioned the official launch of the Better Design Award two weeks ago. As the vision of the competition states: "Better design, Better life, Better future," the true value of design lies in making life better. Design is transforming cities, making them warmer, more inclusive, and more vibrant. It also makes us look forward with greater anticipation and determination, continuing to use the power of design to illuminate the future of our cities.

In the future, SIDA will fully leverage its professional expertise and bridging role in driving development through redesign, promoting the role of the creative economy in the tourism industry. It will work together to achieve more results in APEC cooperation, enabling the world to see more of Chinese design and innovation, attracting more foreign investment into China, and contributing further to the long-term economic development of the Asia-Pacific region and the building of a shared future for the Asia-Pacific community.

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