Business of Design Week (BODW) 2022, Asia’s premier annual event on design, innovation and brands, returns with a star-studded BODW Summit premiers featuring over 90 speakers from 14 countries. These include France, Italy, the Netherlands, Thailand, the UK and Hong Kong. Celebrating both Hong Kong Design Centre’s (HKDC) and BODW’s 20th anniversary this year, BODW 2022 Summit will be delivered in a tribrid format with physical, online and on-demand, with speakers flying over from different countries for the first time since 2018, and physical events held at M+. BODW is also an accredited event celebrating the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
Under the summit theme ‘Design for Change’, more than 30 illuminating sessions underline the role of design in an ever-changing world, and how creative leaders can champion the shift to more innovative and sustainable practices. BODW 2022 Strategic Partner The Netherlands, widely recognised for its iconic contributions to the world of design spanning product and graphic design, architecture, and circular innovation, as well as Creative NL, The Netherlands’ platform for creative pioneers, will bring in world-renowned Dutch design talents such as Dr Koen Olthuis (CEO Architect, Waterstudio.NL, The Netherlands), Marthijn Pool (Co-founder & Partner, Space&Matter, The Netherlands), and Nikki Gonnissen (Co-founder, Designer & Director, Thonik, The Netherlands), among others to the Summit.
Participants this year will also get to hear from design heavyweights including Bill Bensley (Founder & Creative Director, BENSLEY, Thailand), Chi Wing Lo (Founder, DIMENSIONE CHI WING LO, Italy), Sylvain Roca (Founder & Director, Atelier Sylvain Roca, France) and many more.
Prof. Eric Yim, Chairman of Hong Kong Design Centre, said at BODW’s Opening Ceremony today: “BODW has grown into one of the most exciting and inspiring gatherings of design visionaries and creative business leaders from all over the world. Our purpose is to assemble great minds to explore topics that mirror our world’s shared dreams, challenges, and trends. This year, we call for concerted efforts to affect change through the power of design, in hopes that we can bring positive impact to our world and champion the way towards leaving a more habitable planet for future generations.”
Examining the power of design as a force for good
Highlighting the impact of design in every facet of our lives in the post-pandemic world, BODW 2022 Summit focuses on five main pillars: Brand Transformation, Culture and the City, Metaverse and Metaliving, New Urban Models, and Social Design Innovation. Key sessions featuring highly sought-after design and business leaders from across industries explore topics including building climate-resilient neighbourhoods, art technology and creative digitalisation, the Asian art and design landscape, the future of transportation, and brand design in the metaverse.
Among the key panel sessions that will be broadcast on ViuTVsix and livestreamed on bodw+ from 30 November to 3 December are:
The Master Roundtable: Design for Change (30 November, HKT 8:20pm–8:50pm, simulcast on ViuTVsix and bodw+) – As some of the most well-respected names in design, Dr Paul Thompson (Vice-chancellor, Royal College of Art, UK), Nikki Gonnissen (Co-founder, Designer & Director, Thonik, The Netherlands), and Chi Wing Lo (Founder, DIMENSIONE CHI WING LO, Italy) reflect on the world’s current challenges and discuss how design can empower change towards a sustainable future, moderated by Delicia Tan (CEO, Edelman Hong Kong & Greater Bay Area, Hong Kong).
Blue Urban Models: Building Climate-Resilient Neighbourhoods (30 November, HKT 8:50pm–9:35pm, simulcast on ViuTVsix and bodw+) – An estimated 70 percent of the global population will be living in cities by 2050, despite increasing climate risks and the widespread impact on both the environment and communities living in urban centres. Can large-scale floating projects offer a flexible and sustainable solution? Fei Mui (Curator, 2022 HK SZ Bi-City Biennale of UrbanismArchitecture (Hong Kong), Hong Kong) investigates in a talk with Dr Koen Olthuis (CEO Architect, Waterstudio.NL, The Netherlands), Marthijn Pool (Co-founder & Partner, Space&Matter, The Netherlands), and Sara Klomps (Director, Zaha Hadid Architects, Hong Kong).
