Call for Speakers: Share your insights through the RGD in 2026

The RGD invites designers, educators and creative leaders to submit proposals to present at our in-person and virtual events in 2026.

DesignThinkers Conference

The theme for our 2026 conferences is Out of Office: Stepping away from the desk allows for creative freedom. When we’re free to roam, we discover and document visuals with no agenda. There is a creative liberation that comes from being ‘offline’. A celebration of the wild, the unexpected and the thinkers who don’t fit the mould.

The RGD invites proposals from speakers interested in participating in our DesignThinkers 2026 conference in Toronto that address this theme and explore the ways in which designers can have a greater impact on the world. We are no longer accepting proposals for DesignThinkers 2026 Vancouver (May 26–27), as the deadline has passed and speakers have been confirmed.

DesignThinkers 2026 Toronto takes place October 20–21, 2026. The deadline for proposals is March 13, 2026.

In-House Design Conferences

Our 2026 In-House Conference in Toronto takes place on June 16 at the Bram & Bluma Appel Salon, Metro Reference Library (also live-streamed). 
The deadline for proposals is Februay 9, 2026.

We are planning to also present an In-House Conference in Calgary on November 26, 2026 at the TELUS Spark Science Centre, Calgary. 
The deadline for proposals is May 11, 2026.

We are particularly interested in presentations covering the following:
Accessible Design, Artificial Intelligence, Brand Strategy, Client Communications & Management, HR/Team Management, Career Progression, Technical Skills, Productivity & Workflows, UX.

Presentation proposals may be for presentations that are 20 or 40 minutes long. 

RGD Webinars

The RGD is also looking for speakers for 2026 webinars, including for our series covering accessible design, branding, business, in-house design, UX design, signage & wayfinding and typography. 

RGD Members attend all RGD webinars for free, while non-members pay a small fee to attend.

2026 Design Educator Conference

This event takes place at our Partner School, Wilson School of Design, Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Richmond, BC, on May 28.

The deadline for conference abtracts is Submission deadline: 11:59 p.m. PT on February 9, 2026

Presentations

We encourage proposals that examine design education as an open-ended adventure. Submissions may consider:

• Teaching practices that extend learning into community, environment or non-traditional spaces
• Approaches to risk, uncertainty or play as critical methods of inquiry
• Case studies of projects, courses or institutional shifts that reimagine the role of design in society
• Theoretical contributions that situate design teaching in relation to exploration, adaptation and transformation

Abstracts should not exceed 500 words and must clearly outline the presentation title, objectives and intended outcomes.

Presentation format: 20-minute presentation followed by a 10-minute Q&A.

Workshops

Submissions are invited for interactive, hands-on, participant-driven workshops under the theme Field Trip. Workshops should create opportunities for collective exploration through practical activities, discussion or exercises that take participants in new directions.

Proposals should be no more than 500 words and include the workshop title, objectives and intended outcomes.

Workshop format: 60 minutes. Facilitators will be expected to provide detailed materials or outlines to support participant engagement.

If you have any questions, email the RGD's Events Coordinator, Youssef Elgaria, at youssef@rgd.ca.