From October 31 to November 1, the 2nd "Central Plains Design" International Academic Conference, co-hosted by the Henan Artists Association, the Henan Industrial Design Association, and Zhengzhou University of Light Industry (ZZULI), was successfully held at the Dongfeng Campus of ZZULI. Officials and guests, including Meng Qi, Vice President of the China Industrial Design Association (CIDA), Prof. Dionisio Zaldivar Silva, Vice President for International Affairs at the University of Havana (UH), Chen Wenli, Vice Chairman (Stationed) and Secretary-General of the Henan Artists Association, and Wei Shizhong, President of ZZULI, attended and addressed the opening ceremony.

On behalf of ZZULI, Wei Shizhong extended greetings to the attending experts and scholars, and expressed gratitude to the Henan Artists Association, the Henan Industrial Design Association, and peer universities for their unwavering support. He outlined the development of ZZULI and its design disciplines, expressing anticipation for the experts' special reports, experience exchange, and mutual learning of insights. Their sharing would inject fresh momentum into the long-term advancement of design disciplines and the cultivation of high-caliber talents, collectively charting a future development blueprint for the disciplines.

In his address, Meng Qi stated that Henan is a vital birthplace of Chinese civilization, standing out for its profound cultural heritage and robust industrial foundation. As a backbone force in design education in Central China, ZZULI has cultivated numerous high-quality design professionals while establishing a firm foothold and moving toward internationalization. It has made significant contributions to regional industrial transformation and cultural revitalization. He noted that the CIDA will continue to underpin the development of design disciplines in Henan, drive the integration of domestic and international design resources, and help Central Plains design to advance through mutual learning and thrive in symbiosis, thereby contributing regional strength to the high-quality development of the design industry nationwide.

In his remarks, Prof. Dionisio Zaldivar Silva extended his warm congratulations on the convening of the conference. This conference, with design as a bridge, pooled global wisdom and will undoubtedly inject new vitality into innovation and cooperation across the fields of art, design, and cultural heritage. He underscored that UH and ZZULI share vast potential for collaboration in design education. He expressed the hope that both sides would take this conference as an opportunity to intensify exchanges in areas such as joint talent cultivation in design disciplines and academic research collaboration, working together to explore new possibilities for design to serve a better life.

Under the theme of "Mutual Learning, Symbiosis, and Future", the conference sought to establish a high-end platform for academic exchanges in domestic and international design fields, fostering the value construction and innovative development of the design disciplines. A total of 18 experts from home and abroad were invited to attend the main forum and parallel forums. Focusing on the interdisciplinary nature of design, centered around the theme of "Mutual Learning, Symbiosis, and Future", they engaged in academic exchanges related to core topics such as the transformation of design disciplines in the digital era, the design-empowered regional industrial upgrading, the innovative integration of traditional culture with modern design, and the cultivation of interdisciplinary design talents. Concurrently, the conference hosted a national graduate forum, which served as a platform for faculty and students in design disciplines across the country to showcase academic achievements and exchange ideas, further contributing the growth of young design professionals.