Visiting Scholar, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2012/2013)

Chair, School Research Committee
Lab Leader, Public Design Lab
Programme Coordinator (Servicing Programmes)

Supervisor, Postdoctoral Research and PhD Studies

PhD(Design), PhD(DesignEd), MSc, MA, FCP, MEd, BA(Hons)
FDRS, FCSD, FRGS, FRSPH, FRSA, FCollP, MHKDA
RPE(MIE), CEng, FIET, FIMechE, FHKIE, FIED, MHKCS

Public Design
User Reception
Inclusive Design
Design and Engineering Education

Prof Kin Wai Michael Siu is Chair of School Research Committee. He is Founder and Lab Leader of the Public Design Lab. In collaboration with engineering departments, he has been Programme Coordinator (Servicing Programmes) of the School since 2000. He is member of key committees at the university level, including Senate, Review Committee, Research Committee and Academic Regulations Committee.

He supervises postdoctoral research and PhD studies. He teaches design and engineering subjects at postgraduate and degree levels, including design theories, research methods, public design, industrial and product designs, inclusive design.

Siu’s public design research maintains a balance between creative design and engineering. His work is with world-leading quality and gives remarkable impact in the academic field and practical contribution to the society. His work has also been recognised by peers in different disciplines, including design, engineering, public health, human geography, humanities and education, that he has been elected/awarded as the fellow of different professional bodies.

He advocates FlexiDesign and d*hk, and promotes sustainable living environment by designing feel-green facilities. In collaboration with the deprived and PSNs, he has conducted interdisciplinary research projects which aim to bring an inclusive society to all. He has obtained a number of external competitive research grants, including Fulbright Scholarship, ASF (Ford Foundation), HK RGC's GRF and PPRF. Educational research grants include K. C. Wong Education Foundation grants and HK QEF. His recent completed projects were supported by the GRF to study the flexibility of public design for densely populated urban environments and the PPRF to explore the policy of inclusive public toilets for visually impaired persons. In 2013, he established the Research Group for Sustainable Public Design which is a sub-group of the Research Institute for Sustainable Urban Development.

He is currently Visiting Scholar at MIT to conduct a study on "Public Design for 2020". In 2001, he was invited by the Engineering Design Centre of the University of Cambridge as Visiting Scholar to conduct inclusive design research. From 2002 to 2003, he was Fulbright Scholar at MIT to conduct research on user-reception. From 2006 to 2007, he was awarded by the ASF(Ford Foundation) as ASIA Fellow and invited by the National University of Singapore to explore public design for a multicultural society. From 2007 to 2008, he was invited by UC Berkeley as Visiting Scholar to study contemporary lifestyles and public design. In 2007 and 2010, he was Visiting Professor of Tsinghua University to conduct research on street furniture design and FlexiDesign respectively. He is also Chair Professor (2012-2015) of the Wuhan University of Technology and Visiting Professor (Long-term) of the Central Academy of Fine Arts, Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts.

He has been appointed as member to serve in different research grants bodies and accreditation councils, including Panel Member (Engineering) of the HK RGC, International Reviewer of Austria’s FWF and Italy APB’s Scientific Board, Expert Assessor of China’s MOE, Assessment Panel Member of CreateHK, and Specialist of the HK Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications. He is Council Member of Design Research Society (UK), and was Council Member of Chartered Society of Designers (UK; HK Region). He is editorial board member of design, engineering, humanities and education journals and book series.

He has provided consultancy services in industrial, product, engineering and environmental designs, intellectual property, and programme development and accreditation. The clients and collaborators include MTR, CLP, HK Jockey Club, Maunsell, EDAW, Watson Group (HK), VAS Lighting, Urban Renewal Authority, Highways Department, Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, District Councils, United Christian Hospital, HK Blind Union, The Evangelical Lutheran Church of HK, BGCA, and St. James' Settlement. His recent project is a set of removable bollards and railings (FlexiBOL®) which fits the particular physical and social environment of Hong Kong and has been widely installed in the city by the Highways Department.

He has received more than 50 international design and invention awards, including Red Dot Award (Germany), D&AD (UK), Good Design (USA), Industrial Design Prize and Gold Medals of International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva (Switzerland), Innovation of the Year and Best Design Award of British Invention of the Year Awards (UK), JIPA Award for Best Invention in Industrial Design (Japan), Best Invention Award and Gold Medals of ITEX (Malaysia), Runner-up of Crystal Cabin Awards (Germany), Diamond and Platinum Awards of Successful Design Awards (China), Trophy of Perspective Awards (HK). He owns more than 50 US/international invention and design patents. He has published 22 books and reports, and over 50 book chapters. His book Urban Renewal and Design: City, Street, Street Furniture has been invited by the Harvard College Library, MIT Rotch Library, The British Library and The Library of Congress (US) as permanent collection. He has published over 200 papers in numerous leading journals, including Design Issues, The Design Journal,  Facilities, Applied Ergonomics, Journal of Engineering Design, Public Health, Journal of Popular Culture, Human Relations. He is currently preparing two books, Public Design for Changing Urban Environment and Reception in Everyday Life, which will be published by the MIT Press and Springer respectively.