The iDEA Herald Design Forum will be attended by some of the most distinguished names in industrial and urban design.

Leading the roster of design experts are Christopher Bangle, the automobile designer best known for his work at the BMW Group’s design team, brand futurist Martin Lindstrom and Simon Anholt, a pioneer in the field of nation branding.

The two-day conference will kick off with an opening address by Lindstrom, arguably the best known forward-thinking leader in the field of neuro-marketing. The author of bestsellers ― Buyology (2008) and BRAND sense (2005) ― is the founder of branding organizations including Buyology Inc., and a former advertising executive at BBDO.

Lindstrom will focus on the importance of creative forces in the marketing world and how such forces will increasingly play a major role in deciding what the buyer will buy. 

The first of three sessions will be led by Simon Anholt, a leading international figure on national branding. A member of the U.K. Government’s Public Diplomacy Board, he has advised more than 26 governments as an external consultant. Anholt first used the phrase “nation branding” in the early 2000s and has been encouraging governments to coordinate their macro- and microeconomic policies to build strong brand identities.

Environment activist Danny Seo and Richard Register, a famous theorist of urban design planning, will join the discussion about ecological city planning for the future. Register is the founding president of nonprofit educational organizations including Urban Ecology and Ecocity Builders.

The sessions on industrial design and incorporating cultural elements into branding will be joined by local experts, including Lee Bae-yong, chair of the Presidential Council on National Branding, President of Inno Design Kim Young-se, Samsung Design School president Chung Kook-hyun, and Choi Sang-hyun, animation designer of Pororo the Little Penguin.

By Cynthia J. Kim (cynthiak@heraldcorp.com)