On September 27, the launch ceremony of the Institute for Fashioning Innovation, jointly established by Jing’an District, Shanghai, and SUES, was held at No. 191 Zhejiang North Road in Jing’an District, the former site of the Mixed Court. The launch marks a significant step forward in the joint efforts of the district and the university to deepen comprehensive education reform, innovate talent development models, and promote deeper integration between industry and education.
The ceremony was attended by Pu Yapeng, Deputy Director of Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Informatization; Zhong Xiaoyong, Secretary of the CPC Jing’an District Committee; Zhai Lei, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Jing’an District Committee and Head of Jing’an District; Hu Yong, Deputy Head of Jing’an District; He Li, Secretary of the CPC SUES Committee; Lou Yongqi, President of SUES; and Xia Chunming, Vice President of SUES. Also in attendance were Michael Levitt, Nobel Laureate in Chemistry; Dava Newman, Professor at the MIT and former Director of the MIT Media Lab; Rosanne Somerson, Honorary President of the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD); Melike Vaughan, President of the International Council of Design (ICoD); representatives from partner universities, research institutions, enterprises and organizations at home and abroad; as well as representatives from the fashion industry, faculty members and students. Together, they witnessed the launch of this landmark initiative in university-local government cooperation and industry-education integration.
The Institute for Fashioning Innovation is an international talent development and integrated innovation platform jointly established by SUES and the Jing’an District People’s Government. It represents an important initiative through which the two sides seek to contribute to the development of Shanghai as an international economic, financial, trade, shipping and scientific and technological innovation center, strengthen university-local collaboration, and promote the integrated development of education, science and technology, and talent cultivation. Guided by SUES’ goal of becoming a world-class application-oriented university with distinctive strengths in industry and innovation, the Institute will closely align its efforts in innovative talent development, research commercialization and innovation ecosystem building with Jing’an District’s development as the core area supporting Shanghai’s development as an international consumption center and its industrial development priorities under the 15th Five-Year Plan.
At the ceremony, Hu Yong and Pu Yapeng delivered remarks. Lou Yongqi introduced the Institute’s development plan and vision. Guests jointly announced the official launch of the Institute for Fashioning Innovation.
Representatives from Goneo Group Co., Ltd, the Space Technology Research Center of Hefei High-Tech Industrial Development Zone, and MoCA Shanghai delivered messages of support as “Partners in Fashioning Innovation.” Yang Xinyu, founder of MotionCode, and renowned fashion designer Lu Kun respectively donated historical documents from the Mixed Court dating from the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty and a complete collection of garments from Lu Kun’s creative career to SUES for collection, exhibition and research.
Following the ceremony, Li Tanqiu, former Deputy Chief Designer of the Astronaut System for China’s Manned Space Program and Chief Designer of the extravehicular spacesuit for the Shenzhou-7 extravehicular activity mission, delivered a special presentation on spacesuit design and the commercial applications of space technology. Professor Dava Newman then delivered a keynote speech, sharing insights into approaches to interdisciplinary innovation.
As a new platform established by SUES as part of its comprehensive reform of talent development aimed at strengthening service and enhancing contributions, the Institute for Fashioning Innovation has adopted “Engineering × Management × Design” SPINOVATION as its core concept. By breaking down traditional disciplinary boundaries and transcending conventional models of talent development, the Institute will focus on cutting-edge fields including AI-driven fashion design, human-computer interaction, sustainable prototyping and innovation, digital media and wearable technologies, and fashion brand management and business model innovation. It aims to build an innovation ecosystem characterized by deep interdisciplinary integration, strong industry-education collaboration and extensive international cooperation. Looking ahead, the Institute will leverage Jing’an District’s high level of internationalization and its concentration of high-end resources, while drawing on SUES’ strengths in the integration of vocational and general education, industry and education, and science and education. Focusing on the three major areas of fashion consumption, cultural and creative industries, and integrated innovation, the Institute will cultivate high-level interdisciplinary innovation talent with a global outlook, strong industry insight, technological literacy and design innovation capabilities. It will also foster an ecosystem for industry-education collaboration, innovation and entrepreneurship, contributing to the development of West Nanjing Road and Suhewan areas as internationally influential hubs for fashion and creative industries and as leading destinations for cultivating talent in fashion and technology.
