Companies of all sizes and from all sectors, designers, students and creative minds in Europe were invited to submit their concepts, services and products for the highest state award for ecodesign in Germany by 18 April.

More information about the award at: bundespreis-ecodesign.de/en

[ Registration for the Deep Dive is open here on zoom ]

The Series 09 Rugged CAN Keypads are designed for E1 applications and functional safety in accordance with various standards as well as an intelligent control with CAN bus integration. The devices also offer excellent tactile feedback and are clearly visible day and night due to the powerful RGB LED four-segment halo and LED symbol illumination. The customizable illumination provides the operator with excellent visual feedback and is combined with a unique, contemporary design.

Head of the jury Pelin Celik describes what the jury found remarkable about the project:
“This product, which at first glance appears to be relatively simple, impresses with its well-considered design. Its flexibility and adaptivity provide an outstanding experience that is precisely geared to its user base. The light rings are a new and efficient way to introduce intelligence in this use case.”

The Deep Dive will be moderated by Ake Rudolf, Head of Strategy / Award Director at the International Design Center Berlin (IDZ).

China is a country of sharp contrasts: Millennia-old traditions, a strong state government, and high technology shape this huge country and its mentalities. Against this background, communicating with Chinese business partners conceals many imponderables. Negotiation situations are shaped not only by linguistic barriers but also by different self-perceptions of cultures. What do you have to consider when negotiating projects? How do you build the necessary trust together?
We are thrilled to announce Daniel Gebhardt, Consultant and Lecturer, answering these questions in our next digital “Go to China” Meet-up on Zoom - also generously offering a limited number of one-on-one Appointments right after the Webinar by request, bookable through our Zoom Event Registration

After his presentation, Fabian Knopf will also offer a limited number of free short one-on-one meetings for interested Berlin companies, which will be assigned by request via Zoom registration.
These appointments will be available on a first-come-first-served basis – please register early!

Since coming to China in 2009 Fabian has witnessed China's transformation from an export-led to a consumer-led economy. Western companies and brands are still adapting to this change, increasingly focussing on how to serve a growing and diversifying Chinese consumer market. With most elements of the supply chain already lying in China, western businesses are now facing the additional challenges of remote-controlling distribution channels. Additionally, traveling restrictions following Covid19 have forced many flying blind, in unknown and ever-changing markets at least temporarily. The better the legal preparation, the lower your risks – and worries.

The workshop "From Eyes to Ears" is aimed at brand designers and brand strategists. Based on a research project at HTW Berlin, the workshop creates awareness for voice in a design context. Furthermore, it offers the opportunity to discover an emerging field of design and gain in-depth insight into application possibilities and modalities.

The workshop offers, among other things:
- Introduction to terminology and methods of voice description.
- Discussion and evaluation of brand voices and application examples
- Excursion into application modalities
- Conception of a brand voice

Moderated by Prof. Daniela Hensel (HTW Berlin / why do birds) and Judith Ziemer (student HTW)

The workshop is offered free of charge and will be held in German. Since the number of participants is limited, we ask for timely registration!

The International Design Center Berlin (IDZ) invites experts from research, design and business to participate in the "International Design Forum" #IDF22. Focusing on cross-sector cooperation and user-centred design in the mobility sector, the specialist conference is part of the official convention program of InnoTrans, the leading international trade fair for transport technology and mobility (20 – 23 September 2022).

Please find more information on available speaker formats and possible topics here.

Companies of all sizes and from all sectors, designers, students and creative minds in Europe were invited to submit their concepts, services and products for the highest state award for ecodesign in Germany by 18 April.

More information about the award at: bundespreis-ecodesign.de/en

Details on how to enter and the competition dates are available on the Awards Website.

More than 300 submissions from 58 countries were entered in the competition, 101 of these were nominated to compete in the Awards. We are now hugely looking forward to present the winners of the first round of the UX Design Awards 2022. Get to know the winning projects, and meet the successful participants and our jury in our Virtual Award Ceremony.

[ Please register for this Deep Dive here on Zoom ]

Award Winner Ziina is a new digital wallet for the Middle East. The product enables instant online payments for people in the region, including people previously unbanked. The app is built for network effect, allowing users to send money and invite friends easily. Ziina is meant to be social, unlocking its full potential when a person's close circle of friends joins in.

Our juror Ole Heydekamp describes what the jury found remarkable about the project:
“The digital Wallet Ziina addresses a relevant challenge by providing a payment solution for a region where most people are still unbanked. The unique and appealing design combines traditional elements with a modern and intuitive UI language. Small and well-thought-out solutions make sending and receiving money a most enjoyable experience. Ziina uses UX to break existing societal taboos by enabling conversations about money, a topic that traditionally tends to be avoided – it is therefore a driver of positive change.”

The Deep Dive will be moderated by Ake Rudolf, Head of Strategy / Award Director at the International Design Center Berlin (IDZ).

Please register for this Talent Track here on Zoom.

UMI is an ecosystem with the aim of making group conversations more accessible for people with hearing loss and thus enabling them to participate more, especially in their work environment. The physical component of the system "Cara" indicates the location of the sound with the help of light. Connected to the app, it adds subtitles and creates a summary for the whole team at the end of a meeting. The second component, "Caro", is a compact, customizable pod that users can carry with them to receive sound location, subtitles, alerts and emergency messages.

UXDA Jury member Markus Turber on the project:
»UMI allows deaf and hard-of-hearing people to take part in group meetings in a natural and simple way. The integration of sensor technology, optical signals, and speech-to-text makes everyday life much easier for hard-of-hearing people and for their environment. The jury recognizes this much-needed product as a wonderful contribution to integration and participation.«

(Registration via Zoom is required.)

Daniel Gebhardt gives historically derived recommendations for building relationships with Chinese Partners:
Fundamental differences in self-perceptions of each culture characterize every European-Chinese dialogue, besides big language differences. Communicating with Chinese business partners may conceal a lot of pitfalls. These communication imponderables can easily be understood, explained, and avoided against the background of the unique millennia-old cultural tradition of Chinese partners, like Confucianism, Taoism, Legalism, or the famous 36 Stratagems. Based on understanding these diverse cultural traditions, different communication patterns and trust-building mechanisms, successful European-Chinese business relationships are quite possible: How to do business with China?

Following his keynote, Daniel generously offers a limited number of free 1-on-1 appointments from 9:45am CET onwards, giving you the opportunity to address your specific business issues with him.

Appointments will be allocated first-come-first-serve - please register ahead
here on Zoom

Speaker Bio:
Daniel Gebhardt is teaching intercultural communication for management at AMD Berlin (Fresenius University of Applied Sciences). His experience feeds from his work as senior consultant for omnichannel marketing within the global pharma industry and years as a business strategist and corporate communications consultant on open-innovation and digitization projects in financial, chemical and textile industries.