DesignThinkers Toronto 2026: Who, what, when and more!

October 20

Talks

• Ideas for Lectures by Bráulio Amado, Graphic Designer & Illustrator
• Tasty Stories by Erika Barbieri, Packaging Designer & Co-Founder at OlssønBarbieri
• The Abundance Paradox: When more creative creates less impact by Jason Boyer, Senior VP, Advisory and Transformation at Aquent Studios
• Probably Right: Designing in the age of AI agents by Maggie Chen, Principal Product Manager at Ada
• Make It Exist by Temi Coker, Visual Artist
• Let's Speak Data by Valentina D'Efilippo, Information Designer
• The Art of Seeing: How letter design changes the way you see the world by Martina Flor, Lettering Designer & Author
• Out of Trends: How going offline from global aesthetics made me a global creative by Guillermo Flores Pacheco, Art Director, Illustrator & Designer
• Stupid People Start Companies All the Time by Lauren Wong Lee & Gabby Lord, Founders of Super Keen
• Freedom, Risk and Reward by Edel Rodriguez, Artist & Author at Edel Rodriguez Studio

Workshops

• Spectacular Results: The one print tool every designer should know by Dominic Ayre RGD, Partner & Creative Director, Hambly & Woolley
• Trading Busywork for Better Work: Design faster without looking like everyone else by Lee Eldridge, Designer, Educator, Researcher and Author
• InDesign to Acrobat: A practical guide to accessible PDF workflows by Eric Forest RGD, Designer, Educator and Maker
• The Art of Showing Up: The anti-awkward networking rehearsal by Marjorie Malpass, Founder & CEO, Nerve Strategic
• Creative Recess: A play lab for designers by Lauren McConnell, Creative Business & ADHD Coach
• Making Your Mark: Exploring sustainability through hands-on creation by Rachael Seatvet RGD, Graphic Designer, Art Director, Illustrator and Maker
• Pirate Printing by Diana Varma RGD, Design Educator & Podcaster
• See the Streets! by Jay Wall RGD, Associate, Communication Design, O2 Planning and Design—a walking tour

Also on October 20: an In Conversation with Martina Flor.

Branding Awards Ceremony

Join us at the Branding Awards Ceremony on October 20 from 3:15–4:00 pm at the St. Lawrence Centre—Jane Mallett Theatre. This year's RGD Branding Awards celebrate the best in brand identity, strategy and design from across Canada and this is your chance to see the winning work and celebrate the designers and studios behind it.

Join us for drinks at CRAFT Beer Market for our Delegates' Party! Enjoy food and drinks and engage in valuable in-person connections with conference speakers and creative colleagues from Canada and beyond. DesignThinkers delegates can attend for free, but must wear their conference badges.

October 21

Talks

• Personal Branding for Creative Introverts by Goldie Chan, Best-selling Author of Personal Branding for Introverts
• Let's get close! by Nikki Gonnissen, Founding Partner & Creative Director at Thonik
• Elevation, Not Reinvention: Making a respected brand contemporary without losing trust by Paul Jen, Managing Partner at Paul Jen Communications (PJC)
• What lies. A head? by Chip Kidd, Author & Book Designer at Penguin Random House
• Personal Work: Art for fun, profit and whatever comes next by Adam J. Kurtz, Best-selling Author & Artist
• Your Arabic is Showing by Maya Moumne, Co-Founder, Creative Director at Studio Safar
• From Idea to Campaign: Building visual stories with Firefly Boards by Lucas O'Keefe, Social Media Strategist, Teacher & Adobe Express Ambassador
• Fearless by Design by Barrington Reeves, Creative Director & Founder of Too Gallus
• How to Design a City by Benji Wiedemann & Alex Lampe, Co-Founders of Wiedemann Lampe
• Form, Function and Feeling by Christina Worner & Alice Shaughnessy, Founder & Creative Director, Producer & Operations at Dada Projects

Workshops

• How are Pop-up Books Made? Make a Pop-up to find out! by Kelli Anderson, Designer, Author & Educator
• Humanist Letterforms by Jamie Chang, Founder, Manic Type
• Second Skin by Guillermo Flores Pacheco, Art Director, Illustrator & Designer
• Practical Uses for AI with InDesign by Eric Forest RGD, Designer, Educator and Maker
• Panel Discussion on AI with Nicola Hamilton RGD, Maggie Chen, Wendy Millard RGD and Jacqueline Lane RGD
• The Geometry of Form: Building Letterforms from Scratch by Thomas Hull, Chair of Graphic Design at Savannah College of Art and Design
• From Sketch to Wall: Designing Murals and Lettering for Public Space by Andrea Rodriguez RGD, Creative Designer & Mural Artist
• Meet your Monster: How to conquer perfectionism, imposter syndrome and career paralysis by Robert Smith RGD, Branding Expert, Author & Speaker
• The Designer's Mini MBA by Mike Ukstins, Director, Managed Services at Cella by Randstad Digital
• Basics of Modern Brush Pen Calligraphy by Serena Wong, Calligrapher & Lettering Artist

View the detailed schedule here.

Are you travelling to Toronto for the conference? With the discounts we've lined up, you can save on your airfare and hotel stay.

2026 Partners: Daughter (Branding Partner), Forge Media + Design (Web Development Partner), Porter Airlines (Official Airline Partner), Domtar (Paper Partner), Flash Reproductions (Print Partner), MINOH (Signage Partner), Akran Marketing

Platinum Sponsors: Adobe, Function Point

Gold Sponsors: Aquent, Cella, Moveable, Paul Jen Communications, Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD)

Silver Sponsors: belairdirect, Conference Media, David Pike Photography, FSC Canada, Hemlock Printers, Manic Type, The Consulate General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Toronto, WeirFoulds

Media and Community Partners: ADCC, AIGA, Applied Arts, Graphic Artists Guild, Interior Designers of Canada, Issues Magazine Shop, PRINT, Slanted, strategy, swipe design | books + objects

Questions about travel, accommodations, volunteering & more are answered here!