Welcome Message

It is our great pleasure to welcome you to the Kyoto 2026 International Forum on Design Service and Social Innovation. In a world facing increasing complexity and uncertainty, design has become a vital force for driving systemic change and fostering social innovation. This forum, held in the historic yet forward-looking city of Kyoto, provides a unique platform where rich cultural heritage meets contemporary design wisdom. We hope that through academic exchange, cross-cultural dialogue, and practical exploration, we can collectively advance the frontiers of service design and social innovation.

Over the coming days, we look forward to engaging discussions, inspiring keynote presentations, insightful parallel sessions, and meaningful cultural experiences. We believe that your participation and contributions will make this forum a memorable and impactful event.

Thank you once again for joining us. We wish you a fruitful, inspiring, and enjoyable experience in Kyoto.

1. Date and Location

Time and Place

Date: August 6-8, 2025

Location: Hearton Hotel Kyoto

Forum Address:

Hearton Hotel Kyoto, 2nd Floor (嵯峨高雄) 405 Funayacho, Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto 604-0836, Japan

TEL: +81-75-222-1300

FAX: +81-75-222-1313

E-mail: kyo@hearton.co.jp

https://www.hearton.co.jp/en/kyoto/

Contact Information

Reception and registration will be held in the hotel lobby from 13:00 to 17:00 on August 6, 2026.

MSPL WHATSAPP: +60 11-2370 2845； X（Twitter）:@YOUTOO2022

Mobile phone number: +86：18612359672

E-mail: m.scholar2023@gmail.com

Organizer: MICHELANGELO SCHOLAR PUBLISHING LIMITED（MSPL）

Website: https://michelangelo-scholar.com

2. Conference Background and Topics

In an era of increasing global uncertainty, design has transcended its traditional roles in aesthetics and functionality to become a powerful force for systemic transformation and social innovation. Building on the success of the previous two editions held in Hong Kong, the Kyoto 2026 International Forum on Design Service and Social Innovation will take place in Kyoto, a city that harmoniously integrates profound cultural heritage with vibrant contemporary design practices.

Organized by Michelangelo Scholar Publishing Limited (MSPL) and co-organized by the Macau Asia Design Society, the forum adopts the theme “Evolving with Problems: Design Resilience and Cultural Inclusivity in an Era of Uncertainty.” It focuses on three core dimensions of service design in social innovation: theoretical frontiers, methodological innovation, and practical application.

The forum will bring together leading scholars in service design, social innovation, and related interdisciplinary fields, as well as visionary industry leaders and experienced practitioners. The programme includes keynote addresses, parallel sessions, Gala Dinner, and academic poster exhibitions, providing multiple platforms for high-level academic exchange. Outstanding papers will have the opportunity to be published in MSPL’s international academic journals. In addition, a dedicated cultural field study in Kyoto will allow participants to engage with local traditional cultural sites and contemporary design institutions, fostering deeper cross-cultural reflection on design’s historical and contemporary practices.

We warmly invite scholars and professionals from around the world to join us in Kyoto to collectively explore the future of service design and social innovation

3. The invited experts and young scholars mainly include:

Ai Wenbo Postdoctoral fellow, University of the Arts London

An Cong, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Central Academy of Fine Arts, Beijing

Byoung-il Sun, Ph.D., Professor, Namseoul University, Seoul

Chun-Cheng Hsu Professor, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University

Dominika Sobolewska, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Wroclaw Academy of Art & Design, Wroclaw

Fangwu Tung, Ph.D., Professor, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu

Fanke Peng, Ph.D., Associate Professor, University of South Australia, Adelaide

Henry Duh, Ph.D., Professor, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong

Hiroshi Yoshioka, Ph.D., Professor, Kyoto University of the Arts, Kyoto

Juan Salamanca, Assistant Professor, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Kuo-Hsun Wen, PhD, Professor, City University of Macau

Lily Díaz-Kommonen, Ph.D., Professor, Aalto University, Espoo

Matthew Robb, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Parsons School of Design, New York

Mitamura Ariyoshi, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Kyoto University of the Arts, Kyoto

Priscilla Chueng-Nainby, Ph.D., Senior Fellow, the University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh

Yu-Lin Hsu, Ph.D., Professor, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou

Savira Aristi, Ph.D. Researcher, Chiba University

(Most of them have previously participated in the two forums we organized in Hong Kong)

4. Keynote Speeches and Oral Presentations

Group photo (All participants) 08:00-08:10 AM

Forum Opening Speech (08:10-08:20 AM）

Henry Duh (Ph.D., Professor, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong)

Main Forum Chair: Henry Duh (08:30-11:35 AM）

08:30-09:00 AM   Interface as last frontier when co-designing interaction between artificial entities and the natural world

Lily Díaz-Kommonen (Ph.D., Professor, Aalto University, Espoo

09.00-09.30 AM Philosophy of Design and Artificial Intelligence

Hiroshi Yoshioka (Ph.D., Professor, Kyoto University of the Arts, Kyoto)

09:30-10:00 AM  Designing for Social Viscosity: How Urban Cycling Shapes Human Interaction (Online)

Juan Salamanca (Ph.D., Associate Professor, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign)

10:00-10:05 AM Tea Break*

10.05-10.35 AM  Participatory Research Methods in Design-Led Social Innovation

Fanke Peng (Ph.D., Associate Professor, University of South Australia, Adelaide）

10.35-11.05 AM  Beyond Aesthetics: Co-Designing Sustainable Futures 

Priscilla Chueng-Nainby  (Ph.D., Senior Fellow, the University of Edinburgh)

11:05-11:35 AM Designing Relatedness: Mindful Practices of Togetherness in Design Pedagogy: A Practice-Based Perspective through Three Case Studies 

Dominika Sobolewska (Ph.D., Associate Professor, Wroclaw Academy of Art & Design)

• All presenters will have 30 minutes in total (25 minutes for the presentation + 5 minutes for Q&A). Please prepare your PPT in a 4:3 aspect ratio

Parallel Session A / Chair: Fangwu Tung (1:00-5:00 PM）

1:00-1:30 PM The Invisible Phase: Social Design and the Unrecognized Onset of Domestic Violence

Drs. Carmela Domingues Mathias dos Santos (Universidade Europeia) 

Hande Ayanoglu (UNIDCOM/IADE)

Davide Antonio Gambera (Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation)

1:30-2:00 PM Thinking Beyond Universal Design

Madeline McLaughlin (Ph.D./Assistant Professor, Western Carolina University)

2:00-2:30 PM Service Design for Citizen Participation: A Case Study of Urban Immigrant Community Belonging in Glasgow, UK

Siyue Ren (The Hong Kong Polytechnic University)

2:30-2:55 PM Walking Routes and Phygital Touchpoints for Fostering Sense of Place: A Case Study in Hsinchu 

Te-Shan Chen, Fang-Wu Tung, Tien-Chien Lee (National Tsing Hua University)

2:55-3:00 PM Tea Break*

3:00-3:30 PM HaptiMod: Modular Haptic Props for VR Reminiscence and Inclusive Immersive Interaction

Meixing Jiang, Savira Aristi, Hisa Martinez Nimi, Algirdas Paskevicius, Kenta Ono (Chiba University)

3:30-4:00 PM Inclusive Design Thinking for Complex Social Problems: Equipping Future Practitioners to Engage Stakeholder Diversity

Zheng Renjie (Singapore Institute of Technology) 

4:00-4:30 PM Standardization Fails, Tailored Design Wins: A Service Design Framework for Navigating Sexuality Education Taboos in Indonesia’s Remote Areas

Alifia Nur Azzizah (Taulebih, Indonesia)

4:30-5:00 PM  Evolving Through Culture: Participatory Design of a Virtual Co-Cooking Workshop for Levantine Cultural Resilience and Intercultural Solidarity

Argya Hanisi (Ph.D., Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM))

Parallel Session B / Chair: Matthew Robb (1:00-5:00 PM）

1:00-1:30 PM Q-methodology as a Methodological Innovation in Design Research: Bridging Subjectivity and Rigour

Meherunisa Baig (Ph.D., candidate, School of Design & Creative Arts at Loughborough University)

1:30-2:00 PM ‘Foster the innovative mindset’: How a transdisciplinary training programme supports self-development in personal and professional contexts

Kohei Kanomata, Yushin Kinjo (Assistant Director, Institute of Science Tokyo)

2:00-2:30 PM From Objects to Relations: Materially-Mediated Participation in Social Innovation

Raditya Ardianto Taepoer (Institut Teknologi Bandung)

2:30-2:55 PM NUI Design for Digital Immigrants Based on Prior Knowledge — A Qualitative Study on Cognitive Model

Liu Sijia ( Chiba University)

2:55-3:00 PM Tea Break*

3:00-3:30 PM HaptiMod: Modular Haptic Props for VR Reminiscence and Inclusive Immersive Interaction

Chun-Cheng Hsu (National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)

Yipin Huang (National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University)

3:30-4:00 PM Designing Value-Centred Care: Translating Design Thinking into Practice through a Design Sprint in Nursing Home Transitions

Benjamin Lim (ANTUC Health Co-operative Limited, Singapore)

4:00-4:30 PM Decentered Prototypes as Mediators of Social Innovation: Mapping Values, Goals, and Consequences in Participatory Design

Juan de la Rosa (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)

4:30-5:00 PM A Multi-stakeholder Co-design for Culturally-Rooted Nutritional Services in Northeastern Thailand

Latthaporn Chanthonglarng (Ph.D., Queensland  University  of Technology)

Forum Poster / August 7 (8:00 AM - 5:00 PM)

‘Foster the innovative mindset’: How a transdisciplinary training programme supports self-development in personal and professional contexts

Kohei Kanomata (Assistant Director, Institute of Science Tokyo)

Yushin Kinjo (Institute of Science Tokyo)

Kayoko Nohara (Institute of Science Tokyo)

Evolving Through Culture: Participatory Design of a Virtual Co-Cooking Workshop for Levantine Cultural Resilience and Intercultural Solidarity

Argya Hanisi ( Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM))

Research on the Adaptability of Chinese Players' Virtual Culture in Video Games

Yixuan Shao (City University of Macau, Macau)

Qiaohe Zhang (Ph.D., Peking University)

Developing a hierarchical priority framework for therapeutic landscapes in age-friendly community parks: a systematic review

Xinyu Li (The National University of Malaysia)

Wardah Fatimah Mohammad Yuso ( The National University of Malaysia)

A Multi-stakeholder Co-design for Culturally-Rooted Nutritional Services in Northeastern Thailand

Latthaporn Chanthonglarng (Ph.D.,  Queensland  Universityof Technology)

Review of Rural Design Research from the Perspectives of Chinese and International Journals

Songrui Sui (Hubei Institute of Fine Art)

Yuan Qin (Huaibei Normal University)

Walking Routes and Phygital Touchpoints for Fostering Sense of Place: A Case Study in Hsinchu 

Te-Shan Chen, Fang-Wu Tung, Tien-Chien Lee (National Tsing Hua University)

Closing Remarks 5:00 PM

Kuo-Hsun Wen (Ph.D., Professor, City University of Macau)

MSPL

* Click here to download the full version of THE FORUM BOOK.

4. Roundtable Discussions (For all participants of the forum)

Design Resilience in Uncertain Times: Mindfulness and Eastern Design Philosophy (Exchange dinner on 2/F, 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm)

Co-chairs

Priscilla Chueng-Nainby (Ph.D., Senior Fellow, the University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh)

Dominika Sobolewska (Ph.D., Associate Professor, Wroclaw Academy of Art & Design, Wroclaw)

Key discussing experts

Ai Wenbo (Postdoctoral fellow, University of the Arts London)

Byoung-il Sun (Ph.D., Professor, Namseoul University, Seoul)

Mitamura Ariyoshi (Ph.D., Associate Professor, Kyoto University of the Arts, Kyoto)

Savira Aristi (Ph.D. Researcher, Chiba University)

(We encourage other scholars to take part in the discussion actively)

6. Main arrangements

• August 6th

Welcome dinner on 2/F: 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm

• August 7th

Lunch is in the first-floor restaurant. Please show your forum badge to eat.

Roundtable Discussions（Exchange dinner on 2/F)：5:30 pm – 8:30 pm

• August 8th

9:00 AM Culture visit (Visit to Kyoto University of the Arts)
Kyoto Hatton Hotel (departing at 9:00, boarding location at the intersection of Karasuma dori)
Kyoto University of the Arts (9:20-11:30 am)

Kyoto Hatton Hotel (return at 11:50am. On the roadside is進々堂京都芸術大学店）

3:00 PM Visit Hosoo (near the hotel on Karasuma Street, about a 10-minute walk)

Visitors can gain a direct understanding of how Kyoto’s traditional textile craftsmanship is integrated with contemporary design and the international market. (Free choice for afternoon visit)

Free arrangement on the evening of August 8th.

7. The route map is for reference only

MICHELANGELO SCHOLAR PUBLISHING LIMITED

ADDRESS: ROOM A, 3/F, WING TAT COMMERCIAL BUILDING, 121-125 WING LOK STREET, SHEUNG WAN, HK

TEL: 00852-36197566 

FAX: 00852-36197558