2025 Gwangju Design Biennale explores Inclusive Design across Life, Work, Mobility and Future

The 2025 Gwangju Design Biennale (GDB), which opened on 30 August 2025, has entered its second month with remarkable momentum. Organized by the Gwangju Biennale Foundation (South Korea) and directed by Artistic Director Sooshin Choi, Chair of Industrial Design at WDO Educational Member Savannah College of Art and Design, the Biennale presents the theme You, the World: How Design Embraces Humanity, showcasing 163 exhibits from 19 countries alongside an international symposium and design workshops.

Endorsed by WDO, this year’s Design Biennale emphasizes that design is more than aesthetics, it is a means of embracing diversity, addressing discrimination, and recognizing difference. From everyday objects to mobility solutions and artificial intelligence, the exhibition highlights design as a way of exploring the interconnectedness of “You” and “I.”

Until 2 November, visitors are invited to explore the boundless possibilities of design in every aspect of human life through the lens of inclusive design. Below are some of the highlights from the exhibitions, conference, and special projects of the 2025 Gwangju Design Biennale so far.

Exhibition

 Smart, Inclusive, and Barrier-Free Transport

AUTONOMOUS A2Z introduces ROii and COii (South Korea, 2025), autonomous mobility devices redefining accessibility and sustainability in public transportation.

ROii, the self-driving electric bus, integrates advanced safety systems and a barrier-free, low-floor design, ensuring easy access for all passengers, including wheelchair users. Its AI-based route optimization allows flexible, real-time operation, expanding transportation opportunities to areas with limited public transit.

COii, on the other hand, focuses on logistics innovation. Using airless tires to navigate rough terrains with minimal maintenance, it delivers stability where infrastructure is lacking.

Since September 23, COii has been running as a free pilot service between Cheonggye Plaza and Gwangjang Market in Seoul, paving the way for future commercialization.

Redefining Connection in a Lonely World

In Unbalanced: A Seesaw For One, Minwook Paeng (Royal College of Art, 2025) reimagines a seesaw as one designed to be ridden alone. Traditionally a plaything for two, the solitary seesaw evokes the experience of disconnection – showing how exclusion becomes more visible as togetherness fades. In a world facing declining birth rates and increasingly fragile social bonds, the work prompts reflection on what new forms of connection we might still hope for.

When Reflection Becomes Revelation

Apophenic Landscapes by Istituto d’Arte Applicata e Design (Italy, 2025) presents the participatory work DUPLICATE, part of the project, as both sensory and conceptual exploration in media language. In seeking a perfect self, one’s replica is duplicated, only to reveal one’s flaws and imperfections even more clearly.

The work suggests that the emotions we project – blame, jealousy, prejudice, even hate – often originate from our own unhealed wounds. It reminds us that only by confronting and embracing our own imperfections can we truly understand and accept others.

A New Landscape of Inclusive Work

Designing Jobs That Didn’t Exist Before (South Korea, 2025) by the Purme Foundation spotlights Purme Social Farm, a place where young adults with developmental disabilities work alongside people with no disabilities, treated with fairness and respect. The project creates real opportunities for independence through meaningful work – from managing their first business cards and bank accounts to embracing the affirmation, “I can do this too.”

Redesigning Fashion : Accessibility Meets Aesthetics

LUPL Co.’s Inclusive Fashion – A Proposal for Clothing without Boundaries (South Korea, 2025) reimagines fashion through accessibility. Inspired by people with disabilities who said, “Getting dressed isn’t easy, but I still want to look good.”

LUPL designed clothing that combines function and style – side zippers, deep pockets, and flexible bands tailored to diverse bodies and needs.

Similarly, Braille Socks (South Korea, 2021) by I Hate Monday + Innocean empower visually impaired individuals to express their personal style, featuring Braille descriptions like “Reliable Blue” or “Mystic Lavender,” so they can choose socks that match their mood.

International Symposium
 

Design Together, Live Together

Under the theme Design Together, Live Together, the 2025 Gwangju Design Biennale International Symposium gathered leading voices in inclusive design from around the world.

Focusing on three subthemes – Global Perspectives, Innovation and Impact – the symposium became a vibrant platform for open dialogue and shared inspiration. Around 223 participants joined the discussion, gaining insights from nine keynote speakers, including 2023-2025 WDO President Thomas Garvey, Onny Eikhaug, Founder of Innovation for All and Rama Gheerawo, President of EIDD.

Held on August 30, 2025, at Geosigi Hall, Gwangju Biennale Exhibition Hall, the symposium offered a meaningful exchange of ideas – laying the foundation for a shared vision of an inclusive world and a more connected tomorrow.

72-Hour Inclusive Design Challenge

In just three days, 37 design students from six countries joined an international collaborative workshop, 72-Hour Inclusive Design Challenge, creating innovative solutions that go beyond social and physical barriers. Guided by five design experts, the teams explored real-world issues and visualized ideas that embody empathy and accessibility.

Each team addressed a wide range of social and everyday challenges.

MINGLE introduced a painless allergy self-testing kit using microneedle technology, along with PATI, a four-letter system for global allergy communication.

KERORRO shed light on the hidden stigma faced by children of incarcerated parents through social media experiments, school campaigns, and an immersive pop-up installation.

ALLWAYS proposed modular jewelry that expresses emotions through haptic and temperature feedback, offering a universal sensory language.

LOVELETTER envisioned AI Station, an inclusive public platform designed to bridge the digital divide and strengthen community connections.

INCLU5 reimagined water bottle packaging with three innovative designs that make hydration more accessible.

Together, these projects highlight how inclusive design can transform hidden barriers into opportunities for empathy and connection.

For more information, visit the Gwangju Design Biennale website or follow along on Instagram.