West District Design Conference 2017

April 23-24, 2017
Portland, OR

Welcome to IDSA’s West District Design Conference 2017 DESIGN: HYBRID, set for April 23–24 at the University of Oregon in Portland.

HOW DO WE REACT IN TIME? In our current culture, we are required to be, do and know—more than ever before. We’re bombarded with information from one extreme to the other; from one media source to another. It’s CONFUSING! Yet, this is a time when we can create our own destiny and collaborate remotely with people from all around the globe.

What we need are cool nerves, quick reflexes and a clear understanding of the enormity of the task at hand. It’s a demanding, fast-paced enterprise—not for the faint of heart. However, the rewards of success can be great indeed!

In the beautiful, historic and state-of-the-art White Stag Block, we’ll be inspired by a fantastic group of keynotes and other top-notch presenters. We’ll examine the current design culture—and dive into issues faced by designers domestically and internationally—pertaining to the future of ID in virtual reality (VR), virtual prototyping (VP) and other technologies rapidly developing all around us such as voice control, augmented reality (AR) and the melding of the physical and the digital.

“AI, VR, AR. 2016 was very much the year of the double letter acronym, and, if our panel of industry experts is to be believed, then 2017 looks set to take the developments of 2016 and push them into overdrive,” reports this Creative Pool article on Top Tech Trends 2017.

At WDDC, experts will reveal how you can best position yourself to innovate and exceed expectations by:

mastering the fundamentals of how to grow your design/business acumen in an ever evolving world of technology;
avoiding the danger of jumping into design solutions before EMBRACING the technology at hand so you can really have a chance to understand the problem;
preparing yourself for the challenges ahead and taking measured risks that bring tremendous rewards;
gaining hands-on experience with a range of workshops led by some of the top design minds; and
learning what it takes to succeed in this industry.

Don’t miss an engaging pre-conference event; dynamic Student Merit Awards; amazing industry party; and vital internship/job interviews. Just in time for WDDC arrives Design Week Portland from April 21-29!