Traditional handicrafts have a time-honored history and tremendous cultural value in China. However, even with the strong impact of globalization and consumerism in recent years, design-oriented scientific thinking and sustainable development models are not yet available. Based on Stanford Design Thinking, this study explores the prospect of the sustainable development of traditional handicrafts. First, a literature review and analysis were conducted to show that design science, as a bridge between natural science and humanities, aims to improve the important methods and research tools for the sustainable development of traditional handicrafts. Then, we studied ceramic product design via workshops. Methods such as action research, expert questionnaires, and factor analysis were adopted to establish 24 “indicators of the sustainable value of handicraft design” and four value dimensions, namely, “material and innovative value”, “handicraft and cultural value”, “empirical and local value”, and “sharing and interactive value”. Next, an experimental method was employed to make design product prototypes according to the design-thinking procedure. These prototypes were measured and evaluated with the indicators to form an evaluation report. In addition, the exploration of the sustainable development of traditional handicraft design also contributes to the establishment of a sustainable development model of design thinking. It was demonstrated that scientific design is the current trend and future of the sustainable development of traditional handicrafts. Finally, this study put forward five dynamic thinking methods and design strategies, providing the most direct methods and theoretical evidence for the sustainable development of traditional handicraft design. Finally, taking design thinking as the sustainable design framework, five dynamic thinking approaches were proposed: Thinking with the body, thinking with the mind, thinking with the heart, thinking with the hands, and thinking with the soul. Five design strategies were also proposed: Enquiry learning, values education, future problem solving, experiential design, and appropriate assessment. These approaches and strategies provide the most direct method and theoretical basis for the future of sustainable design regarding traditional Chinese handicraft products.

The urban landscape can be improved to reduce the stress experienced by citizens. Therefore, stress-relieving buildings constitute a crucial topic and a future trend in architecture and design. In this study, different architectural styles were investigated to explore design methods for and characteristics of stress-relieving building shapes and to identify indicators for measuring participant stress relief while viewing buildings. To understand stress relief from architecture, we performed semi-structured interviews with 60 participants who viewed images of 30 buildings. The semantic differential method with a 7-point image scale was used to rate stress relief from different architectural styles. The study results revealed that the participants perceived curvilinear buildings as interesting but do not relieve stress. The participants identified as feeling high pressure considering rectilinear patterns to relieve more stress. To support this observation, we identified three principles—city image, identity, and spiritual atmosphere—as fundamental loci of designing cities for livability. We illustrate the three principles with several cases that facilitate a detailed understanding of their applicability in biodesign practices.

The 24 solar terms that form the traditional lunisolar calendar were created by ancient Chinese people. Through a literature review and semistructured interviews, this study clarified 19 key items of the design strategies for the sustainable development of solar term culture, and conducted factor extraction through factor analysis using SPSS statistical software on four types of expert questionnaires, including production, government, learning, and research. Then, four target layers, including humanistic aesthetic value, social sustainable value, practical innovation value, and scientific development value, were formed, thereby establishing a solar term culture design strategy indicator model. Secondly, the detailed indicators of the design strategies for solar term culture were employed to verify and evaluate the existing three types of design products, namely, graphic visual design, handicraft design, and commodity packaging design to conduct an overall evaluation and design value judgment, as well as the sustainable development of solar term culture design. Finally, the target levels of the four major aspects of solar term culture design were compared using SWOT analysis, and then, this paper discussed the design strategies, improvement basis, and characteristic developments of three different design types of design products or commodities regarding their design and development, in order to improve and construct a sustainable nonmaterial solar term culture design model.

The emotional responses and perceptual preferences of individuals for urban public spaces are shaped by their interactions with the physical environment. Emotions and perceptions are inextricably linked, forming the basis of people’s spatial experience. For instance, the presence of dense city buildings can result in feelings of crowding and friction. By improving the urban landscape, it is possible to reduce the stress experienced by citizens. In this study, architectural styles and building facade colors were examined to explore design approaches and features of stress-relieving building facades and identify metrics that measure participants’ stress-relief when viewing buildings. The color of 600 buildings in Japan and Taiwan was analyzed to understand stress-relief from architecture. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 70 participants who viewed images of 30 buildings. The semantic differential method with a seven-point image scale was employed to assess the stress-relieving potential of different architectural styles and colors. The findings of this study indicated that participants perceived that architectural colors influenced feelings of relief. Additionally, they anticipated variations in architectural colors contingent on architectural usage patterns. To substantiate this observation, three principles—city image, identity, and spiritual atmosphere—were identified as fundamental elements in designing cities for livability. The three principles are illustrated by several case studies for a detailed understanding of their applicability in biodesign practices.

New knowledge and technology brought about by globalization can be applied to revitalize local cultures in innovative ways. It can start with glocalization community design to sustain unique traditional events so as to energize the community. The paper proposes a study on designing assistive devices for exclusive palanquin carriers for a local religious event. Field investigation, questionnaire survey, and in-depth interviews were adopted to design appropriate assistive devices for palanquin carriers. This design used shoulder protectors to reduce the pain of the palanquin carriers. It is recommended that the palanquin carriers wear a shoulder protective vest with a protector applied to each shoulder to share the weight of the palanquin to maintain a good physical condition so as to facilitate the completion of the event. The task is to develop a protective vest that the palanquin carriers love to wear and will become the focus of attention in the detouring. The designed protective vest could attract more young people to participate in the event, that is how the aging problem could be solved. It is the first but important step to resolve the aging crisis of the event.