SDG12
UW and NCKU Join Forces for "Design in Taiwan" Workshop
Text and Photos: NCKU Industrial Design
In the summer of 2026, a transnational event bringing together Eastern and Western creativity and sustainable thinking officially kicked off. Co-hosted by the University of Washington (UW), USA and the Department of Industrial Design at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Taiwan, with resources connected from Deisgn School at National Taiwan University (D-School@NTU), the three-week "Cross-Cultural Experience Design Workshop: Design in Taiwan" was jointly organized. The event will begin on August 23 with a preliminary itinerary at NTU in Taipei, and subsequently move to its base at the NCKU Industrial Design Dacheng Hall in Tainan from August 31 to September 11. It leads 15 UW students and 12 NCKU students to engage in in-depth co-creation centered on "circular design" and "cultural experience."
An Immersive Sensory Journey: Exploring Taiwan's Craft Heritage
This workshop breaks the traditional classroom framework, guiding participants to draw design inspiration through field trips and sensory experiences. The itinerary covers field trips and visits to places such as "Chen's Wood Studio" and the eco-friendly select shop "Eco-Homework" in Taichung, as well as a visit to the National Taiwan Craft Research and Development Institute in Nantou to learn exquisite "bamboo weaving" techniques. At the Tainan base, participants will experience traditional "indigo dyeing" and the historically significant "tea serving" (Fengcha) culture. The participants' explorations will further extend to guided tours of the Tainan old town, a stroll through the Anping historical street, and a mangrove ecology tour. Through these rich sensory experiences, participants are able to transform Taiwan's unique cultural nutrients into the foundational stones for their subsequent sustainable product design proposals.
Alumni Support Across the Ocean: Passing Down Beautiful NCKU Memories
The driving forces behind this cross-national project were Assistant Professor Meichun Liu, the Program Director of this study abroad program at UW at the School of Art + Art History + Design and is an outstanding NCKU alumna, and Assistant Professor Wan-Ling Chang from the NCKU Department of Industrial Design. Speaking of the original intention to hold the workshop continuously, UW Professor Meichun Liu, herself an NCKU alumna, expressed with emotion: "My four years at NCKU were truly memorable, and I wanted to give my current students the opportunity to experience the same beauty and inspiration that I found there." Following the first Design in Taiwan study abroad program in 2024, she admitted that while the complex process of organizing a transnational camp was extremely arduous, she felt it was deeply meaningful; seeing the growth and exchange between the students of the two universities made everything feel worthwhile. "I want to specially thank Professor Wan-Ling and alumna Meng-Chi Huang for helping to arrange accommodation and tours, giving me the courage to organize it for another year."
Through her active efforts, the event received generous transnational sponsorship from the "National Cheng Kung University North American Alumni Foundation, Inc. (NCKUNAAFI)," which fully subsidized the participation fees for NCKU students. This alumni care, spanning thirty to forty years, not only lowered the barrier to participation but also deeply embodied the cross-generational and cross-regional cohesion and spirit of heritage among NCKU alumni.
Eastern and Western Perspectives Collide: Focusing on Circular Sustainability and Innovation
NCKU Professor Wan-Ling Chang, the Co-Director of this program, observed that Taiwanese students have fewer opportunities for in-depth cooperation with Western schools, and the cultural context of Europe and America is completely different from ours; such exchanges can bring students very different cultural stimuli. Professor Chang also specifically thanked Professor Liu for actively seeking sponsorship from NCKUNAAFI, which lowered the participation threshold for students and allowed for closer interaction and connection between the students of both universities. In terms of educational philosophy, the workshop introduced the professional Use2Use circular design framework and invited the "Circular Taiwan Network" to lead a workshop. Professor Wan-Ling Chang pointed out that while past NCKU international collaborations mainly focused on Asia, the ability to deeply communicate with students from European and American cultural backgrounds this time serves as an excellent cultural stimulus for Taiwanese students. The same workshop framework, placed within different cultural contexts, can inspire sustainable solutions with greater inclusivity and innovative perspectives.
Breaking Cultural Barriers: Seeing Each Other Through Co-Creation
For the participating students, this will be a journey to break out of conventional thinking frameworks. An NCKU student mentioned in an interview that by sophomore year, one can sometimes be trapped by existing experiences and frameworks, and the workshop serves as an excellent medium to open up one's horizons and witness completely different ways of thinking. A student who had previously participated in the Design in Taiwan program further shared: "I originally thought cultural differences would be a barrier to communication, but later found that different backgrounds instead guided the team to propose unexpected viewpoints during the design process, sparking brilliant ideas that one could not come up with independently." The participants eagerly anticipated transforming their diverse life experiences into innovative inspiration under the influence of indigo dyeing, bamboo weaving, and tea culture, thereby enhancing their ability to solve complex sustainability issues.
The workshop's final presentation will be held on September 11 at the Dacheng Hall of the NCKU Department of Industrial Design. The presentation will combine the dual formats of "oral presentations" and "poster presentations." After the oral presentations conclude, the students' hard work will remain displayed as posters in the corridors of Dacheng Hall, serving as a wonderful testament to this journey of cross-national cultural integration. This workshop, full of warmth, stories, and heritage, is bound to bring irreplaceable and profound inspiration to design students in both Taiwan and the United States.
Provider: NCKU News Center
Date: 2026-08-06
In the summer of 2026, a transnational event bringing together Eastern and Western creativity and sustainable thinking officially kicked off. Co-hosted by the University of Washington (UW), USA and the Department of Industrial Design at National Cheng Kung University (NCKU), Taiwan, with resources connected from Deisgn School at National Taiwan University (D-School@NTU), the three-week "Cross-Cultural Experience Design Workshop: Design in Taiwan" was jointly organized. The event will begin on August 23 with a preliminary itinerary at NTU in Taipei, and subsequently move to its base at the NCKU Industrial Design Dacheng Hall in Tainan from August 31 to September 11. It leads 15 UW students and 12 NCKU students to engage in in-depth co-creation centered on "circular design" and "cultural experience."
An Immersive Sensory Journey: Exploring Taiwan's Craft Heritage
This workshop breaks the traditional classroom framework, guiding participants to draw design inspiration through field trips and sensory experiences. The itinerary covers field trips and visits to places such as "Chen's Wood Studio" and the eco-friendly select shop "Eco-Homework" in Taichung, as well as a visit to the National Taiwan Craft Research and Development Institute in Nantou to learn exquisite "bamboo weaving" techniques. At the Tainan base, participants will experience traditional "indigo dyeing" and the historically significant "tea serving" (Fengcha) culture. The participants' explorations will further extend to guided tours of the Tainan old town, a stroll through the Anping historical street, and a mangrove ecology tour. Through these rich sensory experiences, participants are able to transform Taiwan's unique cultural nutrients into the foundational stones for their subsequent sustainable product design proposals.
Alumni Support Across the Ocean: Passing Down Beautiful NCKU Memories
The driving forces behind this cross-national project were Assistant Professor Meichun Liu, the Program Director of this study abroad program at UW at the School of Art + Art History + Design and is an outstanding NCKU alumna, and Assistant Professor Wan-Ling Chang from the NCKU Department of Industrial Design. Speaking of the original intention to hold the workshop continuously, UW Professor Meichun Liu, herself an NCKU alumna, expressed with emotion: "My four years at NCKU were truly memorable, and I wanted to give my current students the opportunity to experience the same beauty and inspiration that I found there." Following the first Design in Taiwan study abroad program in 2024, she admitted that while the complex process of organizing a transnational camp was extremely arduous, she felt it was deeply meaningful; seeing the growth and exchange between the students of the two universities made everything feel worthwhile. "I want to specially thank Professor Wan-Ling and alumna Meng-Chi Huang for helping to arrange accommodation and tours, giving me the courage to organize it for another year."
Through her active efforts, the event received generous transnational sponsorship from the "National Cheng Kung University North American Alumni Foundation, Inc. (NCKUNAAFI)," which fully subsidized the participation fees for NCKU students. This alumni care, spanning thirty to forty years, not only lowered the barrier to participation but also deeply embodied the cross-generational and cross-regional cohesion and spirit of heritage among NCKU alumni.
Eastern and Western Perspectives Collide: Focusing on Circular Sustainability and Innovation
NCKU Professor Wan-Ling Chang, the Co-Director of this program, observed that Taiwanese students have fewer opportunities for in-depth cooperation with Western schools, and the cultural context of Europe and America is completely different from ours; such exchanges can bring students very different cultural stimuli. Professor Chang also specifically thanked Professor Liu for actively seeking sponsorship from NCKUNAAFI, which lowered the participation threshold for students and allowed for closer interaction and connection between the students of both universities. In terms of educational philosophy, the workshop introduced the professional Use2Use circular design framework and invited the "Circular Taiwan Network" to lead a workshop. Professor Wan-Ling Chang pointed out that while past NCKU international collaborations mainly focused on Asia, the ability to deeply communicate with students from European and American cultural backgrounds this time serves as an excellent cultural stimulus for Taiwanese students. The same workshop framework, placed within different cultural contexts, can inspire sustainable solutions with greater inclusivity and innovative perspectives.
Breaking Cultural Barriers: Seeing Each Other Through Co-Creation
For the participating students, this will be a journey to break out of conventional thinking frameworks. An NCKU student mentioned in an interview that by sophomore year, one can sometimes be trapped by existing experiences and frameworks, and the workshop serves as an excellent medium to open up one's horizons and witness completely different ways of thinking. A student who had previously participated in the Design in Taiwan program further shared: "I originally thought cultural differences would be a barrier to communication, but later found that different backgrounds instead guided the team to propose unexpected viewpoints during the design process, sparking brilliant ideas that one could not come up with independently." The participants eagerly anticipated transforming their diverse life experiences into innovative inspiration under the influence of indigo dyeing, bamboo weaving, and tea culture, thereby enhancing their ability to solve complex sustainability issues.
The workshop's final presentation will be held on September 11 at the Dacheng Hall of the NCKU Department of Industrial Design. The presentation will combine the dual formats of "oral presentations" and "poster presentations." After the oral presentations conclude, the students' hard work will remain displayed as posters in the corridors of Dacheng Hall, serving as a wonderful testament to this journey of cross-national cultural integration. This workshop, full of warmth, stories, and heritage, is bound to bring irreplaceable and profound inspiration to design students in both Taiwan and the United States.
Provider: NCKU News Center
Date: 2026-08-06
The University of Washington and National Cheng Kung University will hold a two-week cross-cultural experience design workshop from August 31 to September 11, 2026, combining local craftsmanship with circular design co-creation.
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