2025 Leadership Forum – Beyond Interdisciplinarity
The 2025 Leadership Forum on Beyond Interdisciplinarity is a concurrent event within the programme of Business of Design Week (BODW), a flagship event organised annually by the Hong Kong Design Centre and The Hong Kong Polytechnic University School of Design (PolyU Design). This year, the Leadership Forum is scheduled for 1 December 2025 as a hybrid event. Traditionally, the Forum brings together industry professionals and academic leaders to share their perspectives and insights.
The Leadership Forum on Beyond Interdisciplinarity will be a public forum, open to everyone, both online and in person at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Our aim is for the Forum to be impactful and to provide guidance to design educators around the world.
Registration
The "2025 Leadership Forum on Beyond Interdisciplinarity"
Dates: 1 December 2025 (Monday)
Formats: Hybrid
Physical Venue: Senate Room (M1603), Block M, PolyU, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Virtual Platforms: Zoom and Bilibili
All are welcome. Please register in advance to reserve your seat: register here.
Rundown of Forum
AM Session
| Time (HKT or UTC/GMT+8 hr) | Moderator: Prof. Gerhard BRUYNS Associate Dean, School of Design, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University |
| 09:00AM | Registration |
| 09:30AM | Welcome Remarks Prof. Kun Pyo LEE Dean, School of Design, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University |
| 09:35AM | Introduction of this year's theme Prof. Gerhard BRUYNS Associate Dean, School of Design, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University |
| 09:50AM | Prof. Don NORMAN Distinguished Professor and Founder, Design Lab, Emeritus, University of California Topic: Design in the 21st Century |
| 10:20AM | Dr Atsushi HASEGAWA President of Concent, Inc., and Professor and Head of Institute of Innovation, Musashino Art University Topic: Design Attitude, Design Abduction, and Design Confidence as potential pathways “beyond interdisciplinarity” |
| 10:50AM | Networking break |
| 11:05AM | Prof. Anne BODDINGTON Professor of Design Innovation, Creative Intelligence Collective Ltd. Topic: Everything, Everywhere, All at Once: Breathlessness in Design, Design Education, and Design Research |
| 11:35AM | Panel Discussion 1. Chair: Prof. Gerhard BRUYNS, PolyU Design Speakers: Prof. Don NORMAN; Dr Atsushi HASEGAWA; Prof. Anne BODDINGTON and Prof. Kun Pyo LEE |
| 12:20PM | END of AM Session |
PM Session
| Time | Moderator: Prof. Gerhard BRUYNS Associate Dean, School of Design, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University |
| 02:00PM | Dr Edmund LEE General Manager & Head of Group ESG Initiatives, Gold Peak Technology Group |
| 02:20PM | Prof. Miles PENNINGTON Professor of Design Led Innovation, The University of Tokyo Topic: Beyond Interdisciplinary |
| 02:50PM | Dr Ricky TSUI East Asia Ventures Lead and Director of East Asia Arup University Topic: “Total Design,” a distinctive and integrated approach that transcends conventional interdisciplinary collaboration |
| 03:20PM | Networking break |
| 03:35PM | Dr Jidong YIM Head of Scientific Experience Research, LG Electronics Topic: Superhuman or more human? What do we want to be with Artificial Intelligence? |
| 04:05PM | Panel Discussion 2. Chair: Prof. Gerhard BRUYNS, PolyU Design Speakers: Dr Edmund LEE; Prof. Miles PENNINGTON; Dr Ricky TUSI; Dr Jidong YIM |
| 04:50PM | Closing Remarks: Prof. Kun Pyo LEE Dean, School of Design, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University |
| 05:00PM | END of Forum |
*Subject to change