By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff Reporter
Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) designated Nah Keoun, a professor at the International Design School for Advanced Studies (IDAS) at Hongik University, as the director general for the World Design Capital (WDC) Seoul 2010.
WDC is a special accolade given biennially to chosen cities to celebrate their efforts to design social, economic and cultural improvements by design, organized by the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID).
In October 2007, Seoul was picked as the inaugural WDC, beating out other cities. Under the project, it will offer various design-related events and conferences next year. Nah will supervise the overall planning, direction and execution.
``I will do my best for a successful WDC Seoul 2010, using my experience in various design fields and wide international networks,'' Nah said. ``The WDC project will provide leverage for Seoul to upgrade itself.''
Nah earned a masters degree in engineering at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology and a doctorate degree in industrial design at Tufts University in the United States.
An expert in design strategy and management consulting, he was in charge of the Design Innovation Center in IDAS and the International Design Trend Center, and has been a judge in many local and international competitions including the Red Dot Design Awards 2009.
He is also the president of Korea Design Knowledge Forum and vice president of the Korea Association of Industrial Designers.