Prof. Carlos Montaña, Ph.D. is a founding faculty and chair of research in the Dubai Institute of Design and Innovation DIDI (in collaboration with MIT and Parsons), and full professor (adjunct) at Queensland University of Technology QUT. He is an academic, design and innovation strategist, advisor for government and industry, juror of international design awards, speaker, and an entrepreneur currently based in the Middle East. An award-winning design and academic leader, he has 30+ years’ experience in Colombia, Italy, Japan, Singapore, Australia and the United Arab Emirates. His transdisciplinary research in design, innovation and entrepreneurship focuses on sustainable development, with expertise in biomimicry and design for health. He was program director of ID at the University of Canberra, Assistant Professor of ID at the National University of Singapore, and Adjunct Assistant Professor in Product Design Engineering at EAFIT University in Colombia. Many of his projects, as well as projects by his students, have received international design awards, including the Braun Prize, Dupont Imagineering and Red Dot, among others.