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Bohao (Richard) Li

Bohao (Richard) Li is a unique and outstanding figure for the understanding of contemporary China. He is the only individual consultant who has signed a contract with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Creative Economy Program from Mainland China. He is the only contributor to the United Nations "Creative Economy Outlook: International Trade Trends in Creative Industries" report from Mainland China. In 2015, Bohao (Richard) Li was recommended by his master tutor Dr. Karen Miller to study for a doctorate degree at University of Cambridge. Since August 2015, Bohao (Richard) had his journey at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Creative Economy Program working as intern and individual consultant with the support from University of Cambridge. He is the first researcher-consultant in fashion industry from Mainland China to obtain a doctorate degree from University of Cambridge.

Bohao (Richard) was raised up in Wuhan and Jiaxing, China. His parents are the first generation university students in mainland China after cultural revolution. Since his early age, Bohao (Richard) has cultivated the understanding of consumption culture. Motivated by his aunt Prof. Jinlian Hu who is also the college mate of Bohao's parents, Bohao started his UK journey in 2012. After graduated from University of the Arts London majored in Design Management for the Fashion Industries with Distinction in 2014, he moved to University of Cambridge, where there has strong ties with modern China that can be traced to the very beginning, for pursue his PhD degree in Design Management under the supervision of Dr. James Moultrie.

Bohao (Richard)’s innovative practice and outstanding courage are highly appreciated by a group of outstanding figures, including Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom; Dame Polly Courtice, Dean of the Cambridge Institute for Sustainable Leadership; Lord John Eatwell and Lady Eatwell Suzi Digby OBE, former Dean of Queens' College, University of Cambridge; Dr. Mohamed Erian, Dean of Queens' College, Chairman of the White House Global Development Council of the Obama Administration; Dr. Chander Velu, Associate Professor of Industrial Economic Systems, University of Cambridge, Senior Fellow of the Conference Board; Julie Deane CBE, member of the advisory board of the Cambridge Judge Business School, founder of the Cambridge Satchel Company, as well as senior officials from United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD); United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); UNESCO; United Nations Alliance for Sustainable Fashion; World Trade Point Federation; British Department of International Trade; British Consulate in Shanghai; Shanghai Municipal People's Government, Shenzhen Municipal People’s Government, etc. Bohao (Richard) passed his PhD viva at University of Cambridge with "Well Done!".

Bohao (Richard) Li's Design with Swarovski

2010 Shanghai Expo

Inspiration from Japanese Origami as well as Sustainability

Bohao (Richard) Li with British Fashion Council

In 2014, Bohao (Richard) Li collaborated with British Fashion Council on the International Fashion Showcase. He worked as the curator in charge for International Fashion Showcase Chinese Pavilion at the age of 26. Inspired by Lewis Carroll’s famous book ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’, Bohao (Richard) took the concept Wonderland as a starting point to illustrate the celebration of imagination. The exhibition aimed to blur the boundary between fashion and art through the fantastical use of color, manipulation and dislocation of craftsmanship, to bring a new vision to the understanding of contemporary Chinese fashion and its identity. Sarah Mower MBE paid attention to his work with highly appreciation.

The Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design

In 2018, London Fashion Week has established the Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design. The Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design was initiated in recognition of the role the fashion industry plays in society and diplomacy and the movement of young designers that are both talented and making a difference to society through either sustainable practices or community engagement.

In 2019, as the member of Queens' College at University of Cambridge, Bohao (Richard) sent his warmest welcome to her majesty the Queen when her majesty visited Queens' College in Cambridge. It was also the occasion that the new Dean of Queens' College Dr. Mohamed el Erian came to office. Dr. Mohamed has brought the reputation of Queens' College from Silver Street to Wall Street.

The former Dean of Queens' College Lord Eatwell introduce why Queens' College co-hosted the Globalization of Higher Education Conference with Academic Partnerships.

The student life at Queens' College for May Ball.

Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership

In 2020, Bohao (Richard) Li has worked as course tutor as well as consultant for CISL's newly launched accelerator program, he has introduced several start-ups to the CISL accelerator program, such as the Hide Biotech and the Yu Holdings. This has been supported by the United Nations Alliance for Sustainable Fashion.
The patron of CISL is the HRH Prince of Wales. In November 2020, HRH The Prince of Wales has launched his first sustainable fashion project Modern Artisan Project with Net-a-porter.
In March 2021, CISL has invested in the Fashion Pact initiative along with the Global Environment Facility and UN agencies.
In April 2021, CISL established the collaboration with Chanel for building an education and sustainability leadership programme.
With China as the largest online luxury fashion consumption market in 2025, Bohao (Richard)'s collaboration with CISL has rightly echoed these projects.

70 years of University of Cambridge at the Oscars

Eddle Redmayne from University of Cambridge won the Oscar Award in 2015.

Bohao (Richard) Li's supervisor Dr. James Moultrie won the Oscar Award in 2000.

The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures will open at Los Angeles California in 2021.

Bohao (Richard) Li's Master Thesis

A model of how mobility and social connectivity could be combined to create the ultimate consumer experience for generation Y Chinese luxury fashion consumers in an information communication technologies (ICTs) context.

Bohao (Richard) Li's PhD Thesis

On the Evolution of the National Design System: The Catch-up Perspective

“There is grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved."

Charles Darwin, On The Origin of Species, 1859

Bohao (Richard) has proposed the national design system framework in his PhD thesis.

The practitioner working experience at UN benefits Bohao (Richard) significantly for his PhD study. As intangible capital in nature, one of the main issues for understanding the value of design and its economic contribution is the lack of comparable, reliable and regular data and measurement framework. Bohao (Richard)'s supervisor at University of Cambridge Dr. James Moultrie has proposed the initial framework for national design system in order to help innovation policy makers gain insights on the economic value of design at macro level. Draw inspiration from the legendary economist Professor Christopher Freeman’s work on design and long cycles in economic development, as well as the practitioner experience learnt from the United Nations, Bohao (Richard) has developed an updated measurement framework of the national design system from an evolutionary economics perspective, with the emphasis on design intellectual property as well as developing countries. Bohao (Richard)'s framework is based on the original data from the United Nations, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) as well as the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), etc, in which Bohao (Richard) has identified a list of “Design-intensive Industries”. Within the framework, Bohao (Richard) has proposed a list of ratios based on the original data, with validation of the ratios from innovation policy makers at United Nations and developing countries, like China. The evidence derived from Bohao (Richard)'s framework suggests that design is a powerful but neglected intangible capital for innovation policy makers in developing countries. During the past decades, this intangible capital has been transferred from developed countries to East Asian countries and regions, like Japan, South Korea and Chinese Taipei. The design intellectual property performance in the United States market matters significantly for latecomer countries’ sustainable economic growth.

Bohao (Richard) has put his national design system framework into the context of climate change. This has been supported by the UK embassy in China. Climate crisis means every designer needs to take consideration of environment and sustainability. Fashion industry's response is very interesting. Company starts to earn profit from quality and design instead of quantity and basis. The design intellectual property data from Bohao (Richard)'s framework thus could capture this phenomenon since design intellectual property data represent those designs with higher quality and above average market value.