IDSA’s annual International Design Conference (IDC) returned in a virtual format on September 22-23, 2021. The event included the IDSA Education Symposium and featured over 50 presenters, panelists, and workshop leaders, all timed in a carefully choreographed progression over a continuous 24-hour span.
In addition to enjoying content that covered a range of industrial design-focused areas, this year the audience was also able to explore several emergent and interconnected topics such as: the importance of accessibility, well-being, ethical decision-making by design leaders, speculative futures, crypto-currencies, and how designing for the preservation of our planet—including all people and species—is non-negotiable for a sustainable future.
While we certainly wished we could have been together in person, hosting the event virtually was the safest way for us to gather this year. A clear benefit of an online conference is our ability to bring together our global community. IDC 2021 welcomed attendees and speakers from 17 countries: Australia, Canada, China, Colombia, England, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Korea, Mexico, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Taiwan, and United States.
The 2021 IDSA Awards Ceremony and International Design Excellence Awards Ceremony held on September 20 and September 21 respectively, helped build excitement in the days leading up to IDC 2021 in celebration of exceptional design and those who share their passion for design with a dedication to the betterment of our society.
Recordings
IDC attendees now have access to all the recordings from this event and those from 2020, 2019, and 2018.
Access the IDC Video Library
A peek into the #IDC24HrLive experience from attendees sharing on Instagram Stories
24-Hour Main Event
Track 1
EMCEE:
Ilene Shaw (ByDesign TV)
PRESENTERS & PANELISTS:
Olivia Herms (bada&bou)
Giuliana Mazzetta (Studio Cosmati)
Melissa Ferere (Google)
Jason Lopes (Carbon)
GSMA WINNER PRESENTATIONS:
Tati Ferrucio, IDSA
Hengbo Zheng, IDSA
Mina Kasirifar, IDSA
KEYNOTE:
Jules Pieri (The Grommet)
Track 2 – IDSA Education Symposium
CO-EMCEES:
Verena Papecke-Hjeltness, IDSA (Iowa State University)
Aziza Cyamani, IDSA (University of Nebraska – Lincoln)
PRESENTERS & PANELISTS:
Carly Hagins, IDSA (Western Michigan University)
Bryan Howell, IDSA (Brigham Young University)
Cynthia Jih, OTD, OTR/L (MedStar National Rehabilitation Network)
Efecem Kutuk, IDSA (Kean University)
Cameron White (Q2)
Robert Watters, IDSA (Carleton University)
Danielle Chen, IDSA (Huge)
Fernando Carvalho (San Francisco State University)
Steve Love (dext)
Raja Schaar, IDSA (Drexel University)
Chris Baeza (Drexel University)
Sheng-Hung Lee, IDSA (MIT)
James Rudolph, IDSA (University of Notre Dame)
William Nickley, IDSA (The Ohio State University)
Jason Morris, IDSA (Western Washington University)
KEYNOTE:
Victor Ermoli (Savannah College of Art & Design)
Kwela Hermanns (Savannah College of Art & Design)
Priyanka Kar (Savannah College of Art & Design)
Marty Gage (Lextant)
Spencer Murrell (Lextant)
Track 3 – Sponsored by Samsung
`CO-EMCEES:
Anh Nguyen and Hoang Nguyen (Creative Session)
PRESENTERS & PANELISTS:
Frances Yllana (projekt202)
Vijay Chakravarthy, IDSA (Philips)
Kiki Redhead, CMG (Sherwin-Williams)
Yvonne Qian (Covestro)
Afshin Mehin (Card.79)
SMA WINNER PRESENTATIONS:
Gokul Beeda, IDSA
Mila Penrith, IDSA
Hunter Elmore, IDSA
KEYNOTE:
Don-tae Lee (Samsung) LIVE ONLY
Track 4
PRESENTERS:
Alex Lobos, IDSA (Rochester Institute of Technology)
Zeerak Ahmed (Amazon)
Becca Carroll (IDEO)
Kellie Walters (Garmin)
Jesse Rademacher (Madeium)
Replay of IDEA Ceremon
Track 5
PRESENTERS:
Tsai Lu Liu, IDSA (North Carolina State University)
Radhika Seth (Yanko Design)
Steven Wakabayashi (QTBIPOC Design)
Ryan Chen (Bresslergroup)
Amin Hasani, IDSA (CURVD)
Mandy Drew (Capital One)
Replay of IDSA Awards Ceremony
Track 6
EMCEE:
Sam Gwilt (Layer Design)
PRESENTERS & PANELISTS:
Vinod Kizhakke (Infosys)
Julia Shao (Infosys)
Ana Mengote Baluca. IDSA (lowecase innovation)
Colton Mehlhoff (Stratasys)
Shelton Davis, IDSA (Empathy Lab)
Ziyuan Zhu, IDSA (MIT)
Kelly Custer (Knack Design Studio)
SMA WINNER PRESENTATIONS:
Annabel Huber, IDSA
Derek Tucker, IDSA
KEYNOTE:
Linsey Nancarrow (Indigo Slate)
Testimonials
“Just wrapped-up 24 hours of design awesomeness (with a few hours of sleep factored-in). Loved the presentation on circular design by Yvonne Qian and the strategies she presented, which can be used to build sustainability and circularity into products. Thank you to IDSA for #IDC24HrLive.”
– John Skabordonis, PhD, IDC 2021 attendee
“Loved the breadth and depth of presentations and the excellent organization! Thanks, Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), for an inspiring and fun conference.”
– Alex Lobos, IDSA, IDC 2021 presenter
“Wishing our friends at IDC a huge congrats. They work around the clock to make these events happen each year. Thank you for all you do, IDSA. And a round of applause to all the wonderful speakers, stellar emcees, honorees, and award recipients.”
– Women in Industrial Design Chicago, IDC 2021 attendees
“It was a pleasure taking part in IDC’s education track. The team had everything so well organized. IDC enabled so many important design discussions. The Hub is super, nice and simple, making it super easy to watch missed talks.”
– Robert Watters, IDSA, IDC 2021 presenter
“I can only imagine the amount of effort that it takes to put an event like this together and run it successfully. Thank you so much, IDSA, for giving us the opportunity to share and learn! Special shout out to Leah Pickett, Austin Del Gallo, and Sam Gwilt!”
– Vinod Kizhakke, IDC 2021 presenter
“24 hours was too short! Big thank you to everyone from IDSA who put together another great IDC this year!”
– Danielle Chen, IDSA, IDC 2021 presenter
About IDC
What began 56 years ago as the first national meeting for the Industrial Designers Society of America is now an international conference and annual IDSA Education Symposium. This engaging and thought-provoking event, while rooted in industrial design, explores the constellation of creative disciplines with which ID intersects: UX/UI, graphic design, service design, speculative design, additive manufacturing, engineering, design management, circular design strategy, and much more.
In 2022, we’re returning in-person to Seattle, Sept. 12-14.
Thanks to our IDC 2021 sponsors
