See the World
Through Design.
Then Change It
Through Design.
Then Change It
Program startsFall 2027
Last update: October 16, 2025
The world's most pressing challenges bring unique opportunities for innovation
At UTokyo College of Design (UTokyo Design), we believe that by uniting creative design approaches with knowledge from UTokyo's world-class academic disciplines, we can empower a new generation of leaders to transform complex social challenges into tangible, impactful solutions.
This plan is still under development, and its details are subject to change.
A new kind of college for our
changing world
The world needs visionary thinkers who can see beyond traditional boundaries and act to create positive change.
That's why UTokyo Design exists — to cultivate a new kind of graduate. One who combines deep intellectual curiosity with the ability to transform understanding into action. Design is the critical discipline that bridges knowledge and impact, turning insights into solutions.
Understanding social challenges to
create change
Making sense of the complexity at the heart of society's biggest challenges is the first step toward solving them. Whether it's climate change, aging populations, digital transformation or cultural heritage preservation, gaining a clear understanding of these issues allows us to approach them with informed, creative solutions.
At UTokyo Design, broad disciplinary knowledge and critical thinking provide the foundation driving real change.
Message from Teruo Fujii PhD, President of the University of Tokyo
Message from Prof. Miles Pennington, Prospective Dean, UTokyo College of Design
Miles Pennington
Prospective Dean, Professor, Interfaculty Initiative in Information Studies, the University of Tokyo
Miles Pennington is Professor of Design Led Innovation at The University of Tokyo, where he is the Director of the DLX Design Lab. Previous to that he was at the Royal College of Art in London as the Head of Program of the Innovation Design Engineering (IDE) joint Master’s program with Imperial College, he is an alumnus of the IDE program and graduated in 1992. He was also the Founder and Head of Global Innovation Design (GID), and a Director of the London office of Takram. He moved to Japan in 2017 to join The University of Tokyo where he also is Co-Director of the DLX Design Academy.
