As part of the 2025 World Design Cities Conference (WDCC), UNESCO and the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization co-hosted the UNESCO Creative Cities Design Forum under the theme "Design Empowers Traditional Crafts: Unlocking Economic Value." The forum brought together representatives from the UNESCO Creative Cities, cultural and design institutions, and policy-makers to explore how design can safeguard traditional craftsmanship while driving innovation, sustainability, and inclusive growth.

This event is one of the key extracurricular activities under UNESCO's multi-year "ICH as Fashion" initiative, launched earlier in 2025. The forum extended the initiative's scope from fashion into a broader design discourse—affirming the role of creativity in revitalizing intangible cultural heritage (ICH) and supporting resilient cultural economies.

Opening the forum, Prof. Shahbaz Khan, Director of the UNESCO Regional Office for East Asia, highlighted Shanghai's leadership as a UNESCO Creative City of Design and commended its 15-year commitment to fostering design-led development. "This forum exemplifies UNESCO's mission to promote innovation rooted in cultural identity. It demonstrates how design can drive inclusive growth, empower communities, and honor cultural traditions," he remarked. Prof. Khan also underscored the significance of the "ICH as Fashion" initiative in connecting creative industries with living heritage, stating that the initiative reflects UNESCO's vision of leveraging creativity to build more sustainable and culturally vibrant urban environments.

The forum featured two keynote speeches. Ms. Duong Bich Hanh, Chief of Culture Unit and Programme Specialist at UNESCO East Asia Office, delivered a keynote titled "Empowering Traditional Craftsmanship through Design: Global Trends in Implementing UNESCO's Conventions." Drawing from UNESCO's normative instruments – including the 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and the 2005 Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions – Ms. Hanh's addressed the challenges faced by traditional artisans, including declining craft skills and income insecurity, and emphasized how design can offer new solutions through increased visibility, creative input, and economic opportunity. She pointed to key areas such as sustainable fashion and circular economy, digital platforms and e-commerce, youth innovation, and cultural tourism as spaces where ICH can thrive through design. Importantly, she called for the development of policies and enabling environments to support ethical collaboration between designers and ICH practitioners, promoting equitable, respectful, and sustainable partnerships.

The forum welcomed more than 60 representatives from 30 UNESCO Creative Cities across 15 countries. Through presentations and city case studies, participants shared diverse strategies for bridging heritage with contemporary design, building ecosystems that empower artisans, support creative entrepreneurship, and strengthen cultural identity, all while advancing the Sustainable Development Goals. The forum reaffirmed the value of the Creative Cities Network as a unique platform for peer-to-peer learning and international cooperation. Participants also stressed that the relationship between design and traditional crafts is mutually enriching: while design can open new markets and opportunities for artisans, crafts serve as a wellspring of inspiration for contemporary design. Drawing on deep local knowledge, materials, and cultural identity, traditional crafts help designers create distinctive, culturally grounded products that stand apart from the homogenization often seen in global markets.

The event not only celebrated 15 years of Shanghai's designation as a UNESCO Creative City of Design but also provided strategic direction for the future of the "ICH as Fashion" initiative. Building on the outcomes of this gathering, the initiative will continue to expand its reach through a series of upcoming activities. These include capacity-building workshops for ICH bearers and young designers, collaborative projects and showcases that promote ethical and sustainable design, and international seminars and symposiums to advance policy dialogue, education, and research.

By fostering long-term collaboration among ICH communities, designers, local governments, and cultural institutions, UNESCO remains committed to ensuring that intangible cultural heritage continues to inspire creative innovation while supporting economic and social well-being. The forum demonstrated that when heritage and design come together, they not only safeguard traditions but also create meaningful pathways toward a more inclusive, resilient, and creative future.