Detroit is the first
and only UNESCO City of Design in the U.S.

As a UNESCO City of Design, Detroit is part of a network of 40+ cities around the world using design to improve the lives of everyday people. This designation puts Detroit's design assets to work, ensuring a more sustainable and equitable future for all Detroit residents.

As one of the 250 members of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN), our goal is to establish Detroit's unique role as a global leader in inclusive design through collaborative action.

The cradle of American modernism, Detroit’s legacy as a global center of design is rich and includes Eames, Knoll, Bertoia, Diffrient, Rapson, Weese, Saarinen, Libeskind, Yamasaki, Kahn, Dow, Earle and scores of other prolific designers.

Detroit is one of the few cities that has fundamentally changed the way the world works, lives and moves.

Many credit Detroit as the city where the practice of industrial design was invented and perfected; with General Motors establishing one of the world’s first corporate design departments and College for Creative Studies establishing the world’s first transportation design curriculum during the 1930’s.

The infrastructure, workforce and youth educational programs in Detroit allow design to be the driving force behind Detroit's economic development. Design is not only a party of our history, but it also has the potential to drive us towards a better future.

ABOUT UNESCO CREATIVE CITIES

The UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN) was created in 2004 to promote cooperation with and among cities that have identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development. The almost 300 cities which currently make up this network work together towards a common objective: placing creativity and cultural industries at the heart of their development plans at the local level and cooperating actively at the international level.

TALENT

There are over 5,000 core design businesses in the region, employing approximately 80,000 people across multiple industries including landscape architecture, interior design, computer…

COMMUNITY

For more than two years, Detroiters have worked to adapt to many unexpected circumstances. But this is not new for our community, which has experienced many shocks over time…

CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS

Creatives find their inspiration in Detroit’s galleries, 22 theaters and performance venues, 11 museums and libraries and world-renowned architecture.

EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

Students can choose from a wide range of top-rated programs spanning many disciplines at the College for Creative Studies, University of Michigan Penny W. Stamps School of Art and Design, Cranbrook Academy of Art, Lawrence Technological University, Wayne State University, and the University of Detroit Mercy.

RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

Global companies like General Motors, Ford, GE, FCA and MASCO base their Design Research Operations in Detroit. As a member of UNESCO's Creative Cities Network, Detroit places creativity and cultural industries at the heart of our city's development plans.

CREATIVITY

Detroit, once dominated by the automotive industry, is experiencing a creative renaissance that's reshaping the city's identity. In addition to the arts, innovative community-led projects are transforming urban spaces and making Detroit a source of inspiration for urban innovation worldwide.

The City of Design Challenge provides a platform to develop ideas that improve access and opportunity in Detroit through the practice of inclusive design, putting the people of Detroit at the heart of the process.

The program builds on existing momentum by partnering with community leaders to offer direct support, accelerating the impact of leaders and helping others to learn from their experiences.

Fostering mutually beneficial relationships between designers & the communities in Detroit, this initiative connects directly to the UNESCO Detroit City of Design Action Plan by providing community-led groups access to resources to advance their solutions.