Jae-Sung Chon

Jae-Sung Chon is Senior Instructor and Chair of the Environmental Design Program in the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Manitoba. His teaching practice is grounded in the belief that design education is a knowledge community where teaching, design research, scholarship, creative practice, and public engagement become interconnected forms of inquiry. Through interdisciplinary collaborations, exhibitions, publications, and project based learning, he develops platforms that explore architecture, housing, urbanism, and environmental design as evolving cultural and civic practices.

His work is shaped by more than three decades of experience as an educator, designer, curator, and academic leader. Rather than viewing teaching and practice as separate pursuits, he approaches education as an active form of design practice, one that creates opportunities for collective learning, critical reflection, and experimentation. His educational initiatives extend beyond the classroom through exhibitions, symposia, publications, international collaborations, and community partnerships that connect academic inquiry with broader public conversations.

Chon's design research and scholarly work investigate housing, urban living, urban interiority, temporary structures, and the changing relationships among people, technology, ecology, and the built environment. Working through speculative design, exhibitions, publications, and collaborative projects, he explores design as both a method of inquiry and a means of generating and sharing knowledge. His doctoral studies at University College London examined posthuman and cyborgian urbanism, perspectives that continue to inform his interest in emerging urban conditions and interdisciplinary design thinking. He previously studied architectural engineering at Yonsei University, completed a professional Master of Architecture at the University of Manitoba, and pursued post professional studies in housing at McGill University.

Alongside his teaching, Chon has provided leadership across a wide range of academic and public initiatives. He currently serves as Chair of the Environmental Design Program and previously directed the Architecture 2 Gallery, coordinated the second year Environmental Design studios, and chaired the Faculty's Cultural Events Committee. He is also the founding director of the Open City Design Institute, OCDI Press, STUFF (Studio for Transformative Urban Forms and Fields), and MAKE, initiatives that foster design inquiry through publishing, exhibitions, speculative projects, and public dialogue.

His curatorial and creative work includes Canada's official presentation at the 2012 Venice Architecture Biennale, directing the 2019 Winnipeg Design Festival, participation in the Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism, and leading the Future School program at the Korean Pavilion during the 2021 Venice Architecture Biennale. These projects reflect an ongoing commitment to connecting education, design practice, and public culture through collaborative and interdisciplinary platforms.

Across his teaching practice, design research, scholarship, leadership, and creative work, Chon continues to cultivate knowledge communities that bring together students, educators, practitioners, and the public. His work seeks to expand how design knowledge is created, shared, and applied in response to the evolving environmental, cultural, and urban challenges of contemporary society.