DesignSingapore Council launches “Nation by Design” in celebration of SG60: Unveils SBS Transit collaboration and key initiatives highlighting design’s role in shaping Singapore

Singapore, 26 June 2025 – As Singapore celebrates 60 years of its independence, DesignSingapore Council (Dsg) officially launches Nation by Design, a campaign spotlighting how design is core to the Singaporean DNA, which has driven our city state’s progress in the last six decades. 

Dsg x SBS Transit MOU: Leveraging design to enhance commuting experiences

Coinciding with the launch, Dsg has signed a three-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with SBS Transit, one of Singapore’s leading public transport operators. The partnership brings both organisations together to amplify design, encourage community engagement, and incorporate thoughtful design touches – developed in collaboration with local design talent – that enhance journeys across the rail network.

Introduced in different phases, commuters can look forward to more engaging experiences through multi-station activations that spotlight design in everyday spaces. Designers will also be invited to explore service design projects to further enhance the commuter experience.

“Nation by Design celebrates Singapore’s creative confidence in building this city over the last 60 years, and spotlights how design can continue to shape our future,” said Dawn Lim, Executive Director, DesignSingapore Council. “Singapore’s connectivity and infrastructure are living proof of how good design has improved lives. We’re co-developing ideas with SBST to explore how design can further contribute positively to the way we live, move and experience our city.”

Nation by Design: A larger movement for Singapore’s creative spirit 

Nation by Design is the final instalment of a sustained three-year long movement by Dsg to champion Singapore’s creative spirit – building on Better by Design (2023) and People of Design (2024). In this year’s campaign, design is revealed as a defining Singaporean mindset that has helped transform constraints into opportunities. It underscores design as embedded in the physical, digital, and social blueprint of the Singapore story, serving as a foundational element across public housing, transport networks, and larger systems like digital services and water security. With Singapore entering its 10th year as a UNESCO Creative City of Design, Nation by Design reaffirms the city’s ongoing commitment to design as a strategic force, which continues to power Singapore’s evolution as an innovative, inclusive, and future-ready nation. 

The launch is accompanied by a campaign video developed with creative agency Kinetic Singapore. Framed around the question “Can a Nation be Designed?”, the video challenges conventional thinking and celebrates Singapore’s journey of intentional progress, showing how design has shaped not just what we build, but who we are. It is a reflection on how great design gives direction, drives innovation, and keeps a nation always in motion.

“This campaign is a powerful reminder that Singapore didn’t just happen by chance – it was designed with intent. With our video, we wanted to challenge perceptions and provoke reflection: what does it really mean to be a Nation by Design? It’s not about perfection, but progress. It’s about having the creative courage to reimagine, rethink, and redefine what’s possible. That’s the spirit of design, and that’s the story we set out to tell,” said Pann Lim, Co-founder and Creative Director, Kinetic Singapore. 

60 on 60: Perspectives on design and creativity 

As part of Nation by Design, Dsg will present 60 on 60, a commemorative project that gathers 60 voices across generations, industries and communities to share perspectives on the creative spirit of the nation and how design has played a role in shaping its people, places and possibilities.

Among these contributors are Chief Executive Officer of DBS Ms Tan Su Shan, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, National University of Singapore, Professor Chua Beng Huat, 2023 President*s Design Award recipient Mr Leonard Ng, Managing Partner of The Lo & Behold Group, Mr Wee Teng Wen, product design student Ms Namjot Kaur, and urban heritage expert Mr Ho Yong Min.  

For instance, Professor Chua shared that the very idea of Singapore as a successful sovereign nation, once considered unimaginable, is itself a manifestation of creative courage. “The reimagination of Singapore as a global city with the world as its hinterland was more than two decades ahead of its time. This re-vision of Singapore’s place in the global economy, more than any other concepts, is foundational to today’s Singapore.”

From the perspective of Singapore’s creative industry, co-founder and creative director of Beyond The Vines, Rebecca Ting, observed: “We’ve grown from being consumers of culture to active contributors. It’s especially visible in the new wave of talent – creatives who are not afraid to blur lines between disciplines and dream bigger. The scene feels open, energised, and full of momentum.”

These collected perspectives will be progressively featured on Dsg’s website and social media platforms from 26 June 2025. Together, they form a portrait of Singapore’s evolving creative identity and the aspirations that will shape its next sixty years.

Design Masterplan 2035: Co-creating the next chapter together

Nation by Design will also invite the larger community to share their aspirations and thoughts on Dsg’s website and through its social campaign. These insights will inform the Design Masterplan 2035 that Dsg is currently developing through a series of consultations with the industry and other key stakeholders, where design is embedded as part of their core business. This strategic roadmap will be unveiled in early 2026 and outlines the role of design in driving national transformation across sectors and Singapore’s next chapter of progress. 

Members of the public are encouraged to visit to share their views on nationbydesign.sg.They can look forward to more interactive engagement opportunities within the festival offerings of Singapore Design Week 2025 which returns from 11 to 21 September 2025. 

“The Nation by Design campaign forms a key part of our outreach and engagement efforts that set the stage for our next Design Masterplan. As we grow from a Nation by Design to being a Nation of Design, we invite all Singaporeans to help shape this future, together. The Council will continue to champion design as a vital force in how we live, learn, work, and play while elevating Singapore design on the global stage and at home through our initiatives,” says Jody Teo, Director of Marketing Communications and Outreach, DesignSingapore Council. 

About Nation by Design

For 60 years, Singapore has transformed limitations into launch pads through design. Nation by Design celebrates our creative courage and calls on every Singaporean to embrace design at the heart of our progress – because great design isn’t just decoration, it’s direction for our future.
nationbydesign.sg

About the DesignSingapore Council

The DesignSingapore Council’s (Dsg’s) vision is for Singapore to be an innovation-driven economy and a loveable city by design. As the national agency that promotes design, our mission is to develop the design sector, help Singapore use design for innovation and growth, and make life better in this UNESCO Creative City of Design. Dsg is a subsidiary of the Singapore Economic Development Board.
designsingapore.org