Celebrating International Design Day 🎉
Once a year, the global design community does something that does not happen nearly often enough. We stop, gather, and remind one another why design matters. Today, designers, educators, students, organisations, and communities across the world mark International Design Day.
Across continents and decades of practice, the belief stays the same: design can do more. It can connect people to place, turn ideas into experiences, and help communities see themselves in the spaces they inhabit.
This year’s theme, “The Spaces In Between,” invites us to look beyond finished objects, toward the thresholds where design quietly does its most meaningful work.
We’d like to thank SEGD @segddesign for hosting International Design Day 2026, bringing together conversations and communities across the world. And thank you to Lucy Holmes and Holmes Studio @holmes_studio for giving IDD2026 its visual voice.
#InternationalDesignDay #IDD2026 #SpacesInBetween
#SEGD #HolmesStudio
Save the date! 📣
The International Council of Design is delighted to be holding the ICoD Regional Meeting Europe 2026 (RM EURO 2026) in Sofia, Bulgaria, in collaboration with the European Design Festival.
Taking place on 11 June 2026, this one-day meeting will bring together ICoD Members and the wider European design community to reflect on this year’s theme “Confessions of a Designer: Design, Decisions and Impact” addressing the realities of decision-making in design amid geopolitical, economic and technological disruptions, including AI.
Discussions will examine how design choices are shaped by tensions, uncertainties, instincts and trade-offs, and how our criteria evolve alongside changing knowledge, values and accountability.
Set within the vibrant context of the European Design Festival (11–14 June 2026), the meeting provides a unique opportunity to connect local and international perspectives; mapping insights and identifying shared regional challenges within Balkan Europe, and strengthening dialogue within ICoD’s global design network.
🎟️ ICoD Members and RM attendees receive a 35% discount on European Design Festival tickets. Details via registration link in bio.
📣 ICoD Regional Meeting Europe 2026
📅 11 June 2026 (part of European Design Festival 11–14 June)
📍 Soho, Sofia, Bulgaria
👥 In collaboration with @europeandesignawards
🤝 In partnership with @studiokomplekt & @melbainitiatives
Design Credit: Next DC @nextdc
#ICoD #RM2026 #Sofia2026 #EuropeanDesignFestival #internationalcouncilofdesign
As we continue to grow our global design community, we’re proud to introduce the organizations that joined ICoD in the 2024–2026 term.
🎉 A warm welcome to the School of Design at the Southern University of Science and Technology (SUSTech) joining us from Shenzhen, China.
Established in 2020, the School of Design at SUSTech brings together an international and multidisciplinary faculty, working across boundaries between academia, industry, and society. Located at the heart of Shenzhen’s dynamic innovation ecosystem, the School offers bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD programmes connecting cutting-edge research with real-world design practice.
📲 Get to know them better, visit their website and follow them on social media
@sustechsz
#internationalcouncilofdesign #theicod #designcommunity #newmember #china
🚀 Here we go. International Design Day has already begun in some parts of the world.
Today designers everywhere are pausing to reflect on a simple but powerful question: why does design truly matter?
Over the past several weeks, SEGD CEO @cybelle_jones_designjoy sat down with leaders from across architecture, branding, experiential design, and cultural institutions. What emerged from those conversations was striking.
Across continents, disciplines, and decades of practice, the same things kept coming up. The same passion. The same stubborn, beautiful hope that design can do more. The same commitment to leaving this field better than we found it — and to building something worth passing on.
That spirit sits at the heart of this year’s theme, The Spaces In Between.
It’s not just about the physical thresholds we design, but the invisible ones — between the object and the feeling, between the institution and the community, and between where we are as a field and where we know we need to go. The places where intention becomes experience, and where our most meaningful connections take shape between people, ideas, and place.
⏰ Starting at 6:00 AM ET, SEGD will premiere 11 free conversations — one every 90 minutes through 9:00 PM ET.
Wherever you are in the world, there will be a moment made for you.
🎬 Subscribe to the SEGD YouTube channel and follow along throughout the day as each conversation premieres.
You can also visit segd.org to find gatherings hosted by SEGD Chapters across the United States, Canada, and in Riga.
🔗 Find more at our link in bio and stories
#TheSpacesInBetween
#InternationalDesignDay
#IDD2026
#SEGD
#designersofexperiences
🎙️ Designers, ICoD wants to hear from you.
Ahead of the Regional Meeting Balkan Europe 2026 “Confessions of a Designer: Design, Decisions and Impact”, ICoD has launched a preparatory survey to inform the Collective Mapping Sessions at the heart of the programme. Your responses will help session chairs understand what we see, what we disagree on, and what we still need to figure out together as designers.
Whether you plan to attend or not, your perspective matters. Responses are confidential and your identity will not be shared without your explicit consent.
Take the survey via the link in bio. Feel free to share within your communities. If you are interested in attending the event, please visit the link in bio for registration.
#ICoD #RM2026 #Sofia2026 #DesignDecisions #DesignImpact
As we continue to grow our global design community, we’re proud to introduce the organizations that joined ICoD in the 2024-2026 term.
🎉Say hello to the Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts (SAFA), Shanghai University! Joining us from China, SAFA is now part of our growing global community.
Rooted in the legacy of the Shanghai Fine Arts School founded in 1912, SAFA is a comprehensive art school in Shanghai. Working at the nexus of culture inheritance, placemaking, and digital innovation, SAFA brings a distinctly Shanghai perspective to global design education and a century of design heritage to the ICoD family.
📲 Get to know them better, follow them on social media @shanghaiuniversity
#internationalcouncilofdesign #theicod #designcommunity #newmember #china
As we continue to grow our global design community, we’re proud to introduce the organizations that joined ICoD in the 2024–2026 term.
🎉Joining us from India, a warm welcome to the National Institute of Design (NID), Ahmedabad!
Established in 1961, NID is one of India’s most prestigious design institutions and has been declared an Institute of National Importance by the Government of India. Offering education across Industrial, Communication, Textile, and IT Integrated Design at bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD levels, NID has built an unparalleled legacy in design education, research, and real-world impact spanning over six decades.
📲 Get to know them better, follow them on social media @nationalinstituteofdesign
#internationalcouncilofdesign #theicod #designcommunity #newmember #india
Welcoming our new members.
As we continue to grow our global design community, we’re proud to introduce the organizations that joined ICoD in the 2024-2026 term.
🎉 A warm welcome to the College of Design and Innovation (D&I) at Tongji University from China!
Design education at Tongji University dates back to the 1940s. Today, its College of Design and Innovation offers a comprehensive range of undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral programmes from Industrial Design and AI & Data Design to Systematic Design and Sustainable Future, all guided by the motto: “to learn and create, for a meaningful life and a better world.”
📲 Get to know them better, follow them on social media @ditongji
#internationalcouncilofdesign #theicod #newmember #tongjiuniversity #china
In Memoriam: Jorge Frascara (1939–2026)
It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of Jorge Frascara, former President of ICoD and a leading figure in communication design, research, and education.
Born in Buenos Aires in 1939, Jorge devoted his career to advancing design as a discipline grounded in ethics, research, and social responsibility. Through his teaching, writing, and leadership within ICoD, he helped shape the international design community and influenced generations of designers around the world.
In recognition of his outstanding contributions to the field, Jorge was honoured with an ICoD Achievement Award in 2013.
On behalf of the International Council of Design, we extend our sincere condolences to his family, colleagues, students, and the global design community.
#ICoD #JorgeFrascara #CommunicationDesign #DesignEducation #designresearch
How many women are in the room?
This International Women's Day, ICoD is proud to spotlight How Many Women Are in the Room? — the publication documenting the 5th edition of AWDA, the international award dedicated to women in visual communication design. AWDA is founded and led by AIAP, the Italian Association for Visual Communication Design, with ICoD as Institutional Partner.
International Council of Design supports AWDA in reaching a broader audience through our global network of design organisations. A heartfelt thank you to the 5th edition ICoD Member collaborating partners who made this possible: Turkish Graphic Designers Association, Svenska Tecknare, Bienal del Cartel Bolivia, Lithuanian Design Association, Design Professionals of Canada, and Pan Afrikan Design Institute.
👀 The 6th edition open call is coming soon with new collaborating partners — stay tuned!
@aiapwomenindesign
PROJECT LEADER
@aiap_ita
INSTITUTIONAL PARTNER
@theicod
COLLABORATING PARTNERS
@gmk.turkey@svenskatecknare@bicebebolivia@padi_afrika@dizainoasociacija@descan.ca@triennalemilano
#InternationalWomensDay #WomenInDesign #AWDA #ICoD #GenderEquality
The International Council of Design is delighted to be holding the ICoD Regional Meeting Europe 2026 (RM EURO 2026) in Sofia, Bulgaria, in collaboration with the European Design Festival.
Taking place on 11 June 2026, this one-day meeting will bring together ICoD Members and the wider European design community to reflect on this year’s theme “Confessions of a Designer: Design, Decisions and Impact”, addressing the realities of decision-making in design amid geopolitical, economic and technological disruptions, including AI. Discussions will examine how design choices are shaped by tensions, uncertainties, instincts and trade-offs, and how our criteria evolve alongside changing knowledge, values and accountability.
Set within the vibrant context of the European Design Festival (12–14 June 2026), the meeting provides a unique opportunity to connect local and international perspectives; mapping insights and identifying shared regional challenges within Balkan Europe, strengthening dialogue and common cause within ICoD’s global design network.
🎟️ ICoD Members and RM attendees receive a 35% discount on European Design Festival tickets. Details via registration link in bio.
📣 ICoD Regional Meeting Europe 2026
📅 11 June 2026 (part of European Design Festival 12–14 June)
📍 Soho, Sofia, Bulgaria
👥 In collaboration with @europeandesignawards
🤝 In partnership with @studiokomplekt
Design Credit: Next DC @nextdc
#ICoD #RM2026 #Sofia2026 #EuropeanDesignFestival #internationalcouncilofdesign
