Facilitating the Development of the Design Industry

Facilitating the Development of the Design Industry

In 2004, the Hong Kong government established a new innovation fund totaling HK$250 million (about US$32 million). One of the core aims of the fund is to promote research to facilitate the development of the design industry; that is, a creative and innovative industry. In a Consultation Paper, the following key question was raised: "What kinds of approaches should be taken in research to facilitate the development of the design industry?" Taking Hong Kong as a case study, this paper advocates the action approach to research as possibly the best way to facilitate the development of the design industry. This approach to research does not only generate particular findings for particular design businesses at particular periods of time, it also constructs (develops, verifies, and validates) research methods, tools, and processes, and accumulates experiences that can be applied by different design sectors (such as companies engaged in different design businesses, and institutions involved in design education and research) in different situations. In addition, as the term "action approach" indicates, research methods, tools, and processes are continuously changing to suit dynamic and ever-changing social, cultural, and industrial needs.