Red Dot CEO Prof. Dr. Peter Zec was announced “Honorary Citizen of Seoul”
On 28 October 2016, Professor Dr. Peter Zec, founder and CEO of the Red Dot Award, was awarded honorary citizenship of the City of Seoul. The Seoul Metropolitan Government has been bestowing the title since 1958 to personalities who demonstrate exemplary commitment to the South Korean capital city. Zec has thus added his name to a list of highly respected title holders, including for example Christopher Forbes, Vice Chairman of Forbes Magazine, and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
With his in-depth knowledge of design and its economic relevance, Professor Dr. Peter Zec has gained global recognition as an expert, a speaker and an author. As part of his Presidency of the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid) and his subsequent move to the Council’s Senate, he shaped the history of design at a global level. As part of that role, he recognised the potential of the City of Seoul at an early stage.
His main contribution to the development of Seoul has been made during his now 15-year long membership of the Seoul International Business Advisory Council (SIBAC), where he acts as an advisor to the City Mayor. His professional dedication and support have made a major contribution to the city’s current economic status. In recognition of this contribution, Zec will be awarded the medal and the deed for honorary citizenship of Seoul in that city.
Seoul is viewed as the economic, cultural and political centre of Korea. Buoyed by its economic growth since the 1960s, the South Korean metropolis has gained a transcontinental standing on a par with Shanghai and Tokyo, not least thanks to the company headquarters of Samsung, Hyundai and Kia, all of which are based in Seoul. This success story is also reflected in the Red Dot Award, which as an international design competition receives numerous outstanding entries from South Korea. The fact that Seoul in particular has become the focus of global attention as part of this development is demonstrated by the “World Design Capital” award granted to the city in 2010 by the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design.
