Dr Mei Yu Yao (Alice) is a Research Assistant Professor in the School of Fashion and Textiles of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. She received her Ph.D. at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University in 2017. Her research now focuses on design thinking and cultural design and textiles, especially intangible cultural heritage and Chinese four-warp leno weaving, with continued interest in wearable technologies. She explores how craft and technology can coexist and how tradition, innovation, and sustainability can interplay through design, viewing them as complementary expressions of human agency, technical capability, and creative intention. She has presented her research in exhibitions and publications, including articles published in the Advanced Functional Materials and Textile Research Journal.