Chiang Mai: Three award-winning projects by university students to improve their communities will be funded and turned into a reality.
The winning projects -- from Chiang Mai, Trang, and Kamphaeng Phet -- were among 15 entries from university students nationwide in the "Love Your Local, Love Your City" competition, held by the Thailand Creative & Design Centre (TCDC) and Thai Health Promotion Foundation last week.
A part of the Chaing Mai Design Week 2016, the competition encourage students in provincial universities to get familiar with design processed and put them into practice to develop their own communities to be "creative districts".
TCDC managing director Apisit Laistrooglai said his target was to encourage students in the provinces to combine their own local wisdom with contemporary design innovation knowledge.
He said the "Love Your Local, Love Your City" project was also in line with the government's Thailand 4.0 initiative, a new economic model to guide Thailand into a valued-based economy.
"If we are to reach that target, we need to create designs and innovations that add value to our local products and services, starting from university level. Our project is an important step in improving Thailand's creative industry," Mr Apisit said.
The three ideas were selected and will be funded by the TCDC.
The first selected project was "HEROes SornLann" by a group of fine arts students from Chiang Mai University.
Inspired by the wood-turning craftsmanship of Ban Tong Kai community in Chiang Mai, the group aims to promote the community to attract tourists and hopes the younger generation will inherit traditional wood-turning skills from their ancestors.
The project owner wanted to revive the community, which was once home to wood-turning craftsmen, and now comprises only six families left in the business.
The project will allow visitors to explore the process of wood-turning by visiting the wood-turners' houses and inspecting their workshops.
The second project is "The Whisper Story" by a group of architecture students at Prince of Songkla University, Trang campus, which aimed to help make "Ban Tub Tiang", an old house in Trang to become more famous with a contemporary approach.
The group will create an interactive guidebook, allowing visitors to experience the old town area including its culture and traditional lifestyle.
The third project was "3 Por" (plodpai, pen rabiab, and pratabjai which literally means safety, order, and impressive) by a group of industrial technology students at Kamphaeng Phet Rajabhat University.
The project found that road accidents were a big problem for primary school students in one Kamphaeng Phet community. They devised a game to help educate students and keep them safe.