The Seoul Metropolitan Government will host the Seoul Design Fair from Sept.17 to Oct. 7 at the Jamsil Sports Complex and four other venues in Seoul.

Formerly known as "Seoul Design Olympiad", the third annual event to promote harmony among citizens through design will open under the theme of "Design for All", featuring 44 events organized in the three categories: Economy, Participation, and Education.

Over 200 design teams around the world -- twice the number compared with last year -- will take part in the Seoul Design Market, while 40 overseas and 88 domestic design companies, along with 25 international designers are scheduled to join design industry exhibitions of the event. As of June 7, over 2,600 applicants from about 100 countries have submitted their applications.

Among the high-profile designers joining the global event as speakers include Chris Luebkeman, UK's future trend leading architect; Stefano Givannoni, a world famous Italian designer; and John Wood, professor at the University of London.

Design for the Economy section of the event focuses on stimulating economic revitalization with design innovation as a primary engine for growth. To this end, various plans will be executed to promote business and industrial activities and exchanges.

Global citizens will also be invited to "Design for Participation" programs, in which the "Green Garden Panorama" and other eco-friendly exhibitions will take place in each of the 25 autonomous districts (called "gu") in Seoul.

"Design for Education" programs, on the other hand, will shed light to the design industry's future through a wide range of hands-on educational events for children, such as the Hall of Idea Imagination and the Design Class for Future Artists.

One of the most outstanding features of the design festival is the pavilions in the stadium. Each of the unique three major pavilions was designed respectively by as many great contemporary architects in the world: Alessandro Mendini from Italy, Daniel Libeskind from the U.S. and Kim Seok-chul from Korea.

The event is also meant to contribute to job creation, and it is expected that approximately 8,000 jobs could be created and over 500 million dollars of production-induced revenue. Most of the programs will be open to the public for free.

For more information, go to //sdf.seoul.go.kr.