Promotion: London Design Festival's thought leadership programme the Global Design Forum will return next week and Dezeen readers can enjoy half-price tickets.
Running from 20 to 25 September at the V&A, Global Design Forum offers attendees a chance to explore some of the most pressing issues facing the design world.
Topics include digital design and the metaverse, identity and inclusivity, and design for crisis and recovery. The programme is supported by the forum's headline partner SAP.
Each day is organised by theme and sessions are booked individually, with some offered for free and others priced at £5. Dezeen readers can use the code Dezeen50 at the checkout to get 50 per cent off.
Tuesday 20 September's theme is named Regenerative Design in collaboration with engineering firm Arup.
Thought leaders from Arup, and architecture studios Haworth Tompkins and General Assembly will start the day with a session on "Regenerative Design at Scale", while fashion designer Christopher Raeburn, architect and Dark Matter Labs director Indy Johar and Low Carbon Design Institute founder Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino will later discuss how the design world can advance climate-resilient development.
Also on Tuesday, Dezeen editor-at-large Amy Frearson will chair two panels. The first focuses on participation and inclusivity in creating regenerative futures supported by WeTransfer.
It will feature director of XT Projects, Christie Morgan, associate creative director of WeTransfer, Diana Alcausin, and head of innovation and special projects at Kering, Chris Twinning, who will speak about how mindful brand advertising and product design can work in unison.
The second includes founder of POOR Collective, Shawn Adams, and strategist and educator at Really Regenerative, Jenny Andersson, who will discuss the difference regenerative design makes to people and their communities.
Wednesday 21 September explores themes of community-building, participatory design and intergenerational justice under the umbrella theme of "Come Together".
The day is in partnership with ExploreStation and ends with a keynote from fashion designer, artist and author Osman Yousefzada with an introduction from Network Rail chief executive Andrew Haines.
Other speakers include the founding director of Migrants Bureau, Alisha Fisher, course leader of MA Cities at Central Saint Martins, Diana Ibanez Lopez, and director of architecture practice Public Works, Dr Torange Khonsari.
Also on Wednesday, founder of Arabeschi di Latte, Francesca Sarti, head of Design Centre Europe at Sony Design, Hirotaka Tako, head of Sony Design Creative Centre Daisuke Ishii, and directors at Open Architecture, Li Hu and Huang Wenjing will speak about how embracing design can forge connections between people, including "the spaces they inhabit and products they interact with".
Thursday 22 September focuses on "Recovery Through Design" and includes a session tackling how to design London's response to the next global crisis supported by GLA who will be launching ChallengeLDN – London's Open Innovation Service.
The Mayor's chief digital officer, Theo Blackwell, will outline the importance of Open Innovation, along with Barnet Council who will address how City Hall will use open innovation to help Londoners at risk of poverty from inflation and the cost of living crisis.
The day will also feature a panel on collaboration and circular design in partnership with GDF headline partner SAP, with speakers including furniture designer Sebastian Cox, IKEA chief creative officer Marcus Engman, fashion designer Phoebe English and managing director of Accenture Song's Sustainability Studio, John Oswald.
Friday 23 September is a varied day including sessions on ocean plastic pollution, creativity across the UK – in partnership with Unboxed – and equity in public art.
A discussion called Art and Equity in Public Space takes place on Friday at the V&A speakers include global head of research at Adjaye Associates, Lady Ashley Adjaye, architect and founder of Dumbuya, Foday Dumbuya, artist, Thomas J Price, and sculptor, Veronica Ryan.
The programme culminates on Sunday 25 September with an exploration of "Design in the Metaverse".
The final day includes a discussion by Palestinian architect Elias Anastas, and founder and director of Ma-tt-er, Seetal Solanki – a practice focused on forming "kinships between materials, the immaterial and virtual".
It will also include London-based technology and design practice Studio Above and Below in conversation on the potential of the metaverse and social justice and experiential lead at Global Experiences at Meta, Damien Baines.
The full programme for the Global Design Forum can be viewed on the London Design Festival website.
Dezeen readers can use the code Dezeen50 at checkout to get 50 per cent off.
The London Design Festival takes place from 17 to 25 September 2022. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.
Partnership content
This article was written by Dezeen for the Global Design Forum as part of a partnership. Find out more about Dezeen partnership content here.