Hello, I am Yihan Dong.
I design, research, and imagine futures where technology cares, where innovation listens to bodies, environments, and the quiet rhythms that shape everyday life. I leverage cutting-edge technologies to real-life scenarios in a care-centered and environmentally sustainable manner. Through creative thinking and keen empathy, I aim to solve real, yet often overlooked, high-impact problems in our society.
I have been recognized in various design categories, winning prestigious awards such as the Red Dot Design Award: Best of the Best, the UK National Winner of the James Dyson Award, the D&AD Future Impact Pencil Winner, and the Royal Society of Arts Student Design Award. My design works have been featured by the Singapore Red Dot Museum, The Times, Sky TV, The NIHR, and Dezeen.
I have been recognized in various design categories, winning prestigious awards such as the Red Dot Design Award: Best of the Best, the UK National Winner of the James Dyson Award, the D&AD Future Impact Pencil Winner, and the Royal Society of Arts Student Design Award. My design works have been featured by the Singapore Red Dot Museum, The Times, Sky TV, The NIHR, and Dezeen.
I create, research, and lead an ongoing women's health project: ViWipe with Imperial College London and NIHR funding to explore new diagnostic possibilities from the intimate materiality of the body.
My broader research spans ecofeminism, material ecology, and sustainable HCI, currently pursued through a PhD focusing on embodied practices and energy technology. I believe that my female body, its rhythms, and its vulnerabilities are deeply connected to how I understand nature, ecosystems, and everyday practices. Through design, I aim to translate these embodied perspectives into both practical innovations and theoretical contributions.
Funding/Grants
National Institute for Health and Care Research £150K. (2025)
UBEL DTP (2025-2028)
D&AD Impact Fund £25K. (2024)
Just/Transition Grant £10K.(2024)
Wings for Ideas £2.5K.(2023)
Press
Design Insider: https://www.designinsiderlive.com/purposefully-repurposing-at-london-design-festival-2024/
Shanghai Design Week: https://flbook.com.cn/c/whpCQRjn1Y
Royal College of Art: https://www.rca.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/meet-our-2023-graduates-year-after-rca/
Design Week: https://www.designweek.co.uk/issues/18-september-22-september-2023/helen-hamlyn-design-award-winners-2023/
World Economic Forum: https://www.instagram.com/reel/CxN-HhQt0oR/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA%3D%3D
Exhibition
Material World (2025). Kew Gardens, London, UK
World Design Cities Conference (2025). Shanghai, China
Red Dot Design Award: Best of Best Museum Display (2025). Singapore.
GreenGradute (2024). London, UK
Material Matters, London Design Festival (2024). London, UK.
Shanghai Design Week Exhibition: Continuum (2024). Shanghai, China.
The Great Exhibition Road Festival (2024). London, UK.
Food4Future (2024). Bilbao, Spain.
Advance Engineering (2024). Birmingham, UK.
Consumer Electronics Show (2024). Las Vegas, USA.
Royal College of Art Degree Show (2023). London, UK.
Beijing Design Week (2021). Beijing, China.
Awards
Red Dot Design Award: Best of Best (2025). Singapore.
D&AD Future Impact Pencil: Winner (2024)
IDA Design Award: Gold Winner in Industrial and Life Science Design (2024)
European Product Design Award: Winner in Industrial/Healthcare Products (2024)
Tecno SustainTech Competition: Best Pitch (2024)
James Dyson Design Award: UK National Winner & National Runner-up (2023)
Logitech Grand Challenge RCA: VR Design Winner (2023)
Mayor’s Entrepreneur Competition: Health Track Finalist (2023)
Westminster Impact Competition: DigitalTech Winner (2023)
K-Design Award: Winner in EdTech/STEM Products & Industrial Design (2022)
A' Design Award: Bronze Prize in Mobile Technologies, Applications and Software (2021)
Royal Society of Arts Student Design Awards: Circular Fashion (2020)