On September 29, Professor Sotamaa, former Executive Vice Director of the Sino-Finnish Centre was awarded the Chinese Government Friendship Awards. This year’s Friendship Award was awarded to more than 50 foreign citizens by Prime Minister Mr Li Keqiang in a grand ceremony in the Great Hall of the People. Chinese Government Friendship Awards is the People's Republic of China's highest award for "foreign experts who have made outstanding contributions to the country's economic and social progress".

Professor Sotamaa is a long-standing President of the University of Art and Design Helsinki (1986-2008) and the first President of the design universities global CUMULUS Association (2001-2007). He has actively developed university, innovation and design cooperation between Finland and China.

In 2008, Professor Sotamaa was appointed the chairman of an international team that drafted the proposal for the College of Design and Innovation (D&I) to be established at Tongji University. He was invited in 2008 to Professor of Tongji University and in 2009 he was appointed the Advisory Dean and Board Member of the D&I. The college is a part of the ambitious creative industry, design and sustainable development program of China, which aims at turning China from a “world factory” to a sustainable creative economy.

Professor Sotamaa served in 2010-2013 as Executive Vice Director of the Sino-Finnish Centre established together by Aalto University and Tongji University in Shanghai. The Aalto-Tongji Design Factory of the Sino-Finnish Centre is a pilot project of new learning culture in China. Prof. Sotamaa was also the Chief Representative of the Helsinki World Design Capital 2012 project in China and leader of the biggest satellite event of World Design Capital 2012 project, the Radical Design Week in Shanghai 2012.

Professor Sotamaa says that “While the Friendship Award is a personal honorary award to him, it also gives stature to Finnish design and collaboration between institutions of higher education that he has commendably promoted in China. The Award is naturally also recognition to the magnificent Finnish-Chinese team, which is behind the successful cooperation and influential development work. Especially important has been the role of Professor Lou Yongqi who has been the visionary leader of the fine Chinese team”.