Hong Kong's first design institute to foster social innovation

By eGov Innovation Editors | Jan 22, 2012

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The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has announced the establishment of a design institute that will foster innovations that will benefit society most.

Among these innovations now being developed in the university that will benefit from the creative exchange platform of the new school is Professor Michael Sui's i-Give, an electronic donation system that allows people to make donations with electronic cash. A QR code allows donors to receive digital souvenirs such as wallpapers, ringtones and games.

"i-Give also means I want to give, I want to share my happiness, my money with other people," explained Professor Sui.

Another invention by Professor Sui is a Chinese chess set that allows visual impaired people to play the game with sighted peers.

Set to be completed by middle of 2013, the Design Institute for Social Innovation will be housed at PolyU School of design in the 15-story Jockey Club Innovation Tower, which is the first permanent design in Hong Kong by world-renowned architect Zaha Hadid.

Construction of the Innovation Tower was approved by the government in 2009 and funded by PolyU, with a $249-million grant from the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities.
 
"The building will definitely become a landmark and strengthen Hong Kong's status as a design hub, and the Institute will help us chart new course in advocating design for social goods," Professor Cees de Bont, Dean-designate for PolyU School of Design.

T. Brian Stevenson, Chairman of The Hong Kong Jockey Club, said the organization believes the institute will "provide a springboard for community education and training; foster student learning and help nurture a new generation of design professionals who are not only innovative but also socially conscious," said T. Brian Stevenson, Chairman of The Hong Kong Jockey Club."