Jo-Ann is the Chief Executive Officer of the Design Institute of Australia (DIA) and a leading voice of Australian design. Since 2015, Jo-Ann has overseen new initiatives to enhance the value and competitive success of Australian designers.

Boasting extensive experience working in leadership roles, Jo-Ann most recently brought her skills to the Australian Design Alliance and the Standards Australia CS92 Clothing Sizes Committee. She is also the immediate past Executive Director and CEO of the Council of Textile & Fashion Industries of Australia (TFIA). With a career spanning business, education, and the not-for-profit sector, Jo-Ann is equipped with a 360 degree understanding of design through practice, education, and good business sense.

A vocal advocate for design for more than twenty years, Jo-Ann received an Honorary Fellowship in 2014 from the Design Institute of Australia in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the industry.

Nila Rezaei is an Iranian-Australian industrial designer, educator, and co-founder of RK Collective, a female-led studio focused on sustainability, social impact, and cultural storytelling. With a background spanning consultancy, in-house innovation, and academic leadership, her work bridges critical thinking, material innovation, and social impact, and explores the role of design in shaping equitable and regenerative futures. She is a sessional academic at UNSW Art & Design, where she centres ethics as a foundation of sustainability in all its pillars, guiding emerging designers to critically examine the social and environmental impact of their work.

As Chair of the NSW Council at the Design Institute of Australia (DIA), Nila champions ethics-driven leadership, diverse representation, and the empowerment of emerging design voices. As initiator and lead curator of this collective ethics response, she is committed to fostering honest dialogue, shared responsibility, and collective accountability within the Australian design profession.

Eloise embarked on her industrial design journey after graduating from the University of Technology Sydney with Honours in Product Design in 2018. Her journey was marked by winning the Design Institute Australia’s Product Design NSW/ACT Graduate of the Year in 2019. Eloise’s Honours thesis revealed a passion for inclusive design practices within a product context. Through her collaboration with marginalised groups, Eloise realised the transformative power of design in improving accessibility for all.

As a DIA NSW council member since 2021, Eloise collaborates with interdisciplinary design leaders to drive initiatives promoting sustainable design practices and educational workshops. Eloise’s commitment to education extends to tutoring students from first year to honours at UTS, as well as serving as a guest lecturer and member of an external advisory board for Western Sydney Uni.

Liam is an industrial designer at the Herston Biofabrication Institute, an advanced manufacturing facility creating medical devices and clinical training models for Queensland hospitals. He is also the Co-Chair of the Design Institute of Australia (DIA) Queensland Council, where he champions design advocacy and supports the growth of the industry. With a passion for impactful, human-centred solutions, Liam brings together creativity, technical skill, and a commitment to advancing the role of design in healthcare.

I’m a Sydney based industrial designer currently designing in-house at King Living and occasionally tutoring at UTS.

The pursuit of better products through manufacturing and materials often takes me overseas where I’ve been fortunate to have spent a lot of time in factories witnessing how the world’s stuff gets made.
Returning from travel also always deepens my appreciation for the feeling of home. I love designing objects that can shape the atmosphere of everyday spaces, and that people come to treasure.

Steve Martinuzzo is a seasoned industrial designer and the Managing Director of Cobalt Design, where he leads the development of high-performance products across sectors including medical, scientific, and consumer technology.

With over three decades of experience, Steve has been instrumental in delivering advanced analytical and medical devices for global companies including Agilent Technologies and Leica Biosystems.

He has also played a significant leadership role within the Australian design community as a former Director and Victorian President of the Design Institute of Australia (DIA), and has contributed to various state and federal government design and innovation committees. A DIA Hall of Fame inductee, Steve is widely respected as an awards judge, expert witness, and advocate for design excellence and professional growth across the industry.

Maoxin Yuan is an emerging industrial designer whose practice is grounded in strategic thinking, user empathy, and a strong commitment to sustainability.

He has graduated from UNSW with first-class honours and is the recipient of DIA’s prestigious Australian Graduate of the Year Award (AGOTYA) Madeline Lester Prize, recognised for his exceptional talent and thoughtful design approach.

Maoxin’s philosophy centres on harmonising aesthetics and innovation to create meaningful, sustainable products. Influenced by the Double Diamond framework, his research-driven process uncovers deep user insights and transforms them into refined, purposeful solutions.

His dedication to continuous learning is evident through internships at KWA Design, Purpose Design Lab, Vert Design and employment at Katapault Design, where he further developed skills in emerging technologies, materials, and manufacturing.

Geetha Narayanan is founder and Director of Srishti and a WDO Regional Advisor. She has dedicated her life to finding and establishing new models of educational institutions that are creative, synergistic and original in their approach to learning. An administrator, researcher, teacher and facilitator, she has pioneered many courses and projects that examine a wide variety of needs, social and educational. She is at present involved in a radical overhaul of Srishti’s design pedagogy, curriculum development and social responsibility. She is also involved in a program that seeks to develop and train teachers for underserved communities.

Sonia Manchanda is Founding Partner at Spread, a global practice with a stellar reputation in Brand and Experience Design, building expertise in design-led media and technology, creating virtual immersive experiences. She has set up the Design Barn, India’s first independent facility to bridge the design + innovation gap. Sonia is also a member of WDO’s 2023-2025 Board of Directors.

Mahendra Chauhan is a design leader who has a deep expertise in product design and interaction design. He has designed some of the most iconic products and won many national and international design awards, including ‘Red Dot’ and ‘Good Design Award’ and speaks at various design forums. Currently, he is head of the design team for TITAN, India’s most well-known lifestyle company.

Col Surojit Bose is a seasoned academician and thought leader in the area of design, innovation and international collaborations.⁣⁣⁣ He is currently the head of Unitedworld Institute of Design (UID).

A dynamic professional with a hands-on approach, Aditi has 30 years of professional expertise from academia, marketing, and entrepreneurship her core competencies include strategic collaborations, brand development, marketing, curriculum design, training, talent acquisition, and business operations.

Professor Gopal Meena, an alumnus of the National Institute of Design and a passionate multidisciplinary designer, design strategist and seasoned design faculty member, has over a decade of academic and industry experience in respected National and International Design Institutes. Gopal completed his undergraduate graduation from IHM Ahmedabad and an M.Des in experience design from NID.

Dr. Anuradha Chatterjee is an Indian-born Australian academic practitioner in architecture and design based in Australia and India. She has over twenty years of experience in research, teaching and administration gained through various academic positions in Australia (University of New South Wales, University of Sydney, University of Technology Sydney, University of Tasmania, University of South Australia), China (Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University), and India (Manipal University Jaipur, Srishti Manipal Institute of Art Design and Technology, Pearl Academy and Sushant School of Architecture), where her focus has been on developing critical and research-based pedagogies in studio and history and theory subjects.

Anuj Prasad is a seasoned industrial designer with over 30 years of experience. After earning his Master’s in Product Design from NID in 1993, he co-founded Desmania, one of India’s most awarded industrial design studios. Desmania offers design solutions across the FMCG, consumer durables, and automotive sectors. Desmania has been recognized multiple times as the Best Industrial Design Studio in India.

Sertaç Ersayın is an internationally recognized industrial designer, design strategist, and creative industries leader from Turkey. With over 35 years of experience, he has served in executive roles, including on the board of the World Design Organization (WDO), between 2019 and 2023 and advocates for sustainable design, innovation, and creative economy development globally. He is President of Industrial Designers Society of Turkey and Creative Industries Council Association in Turkey.

Gülay Hasdoğan is a Professor and Head of the Department of Industrial Design at Middle East Technical University (METU). She is a founding member and former Chair of the Industrial Designers Society of Turkey (ETMK) as well as the Industrial Designers Commission of the Chamber of Architects of Turkey. Her contributions to the field include involvement in the establishment of the Design Turkey Industrial Design Awards and the development of the national accreditation scheme for industrial design undergraduate education programs in Turkey (ENTAK).

Fatma Korkut is an associate professor in the Industrial Design Department at Middle East Technical University (METU). She is an active member and past chair of the Industrial Designers Society of Turkey (ETMK). She has been involved in professional bodies promoting and regulating industrial design education and the profession in Turkey for the last three decades.

Milja Havusela is an experienced Designer driven by responsible thinking. With a BA in Culture and Arts (major in footwear), she has worked across product design, marketing, and B2B sales with growing awareness of the need for more sustainable practices in the Fashion, Sports, Health & Wellness industries she’s worked in. She also studied entrepreneurship at Haaga-Helia, which broadened her understanding of business before returning to her design roots. In addition to her core design work, Milja has experience in UI/UX and circular design projects. Most recently, she deepened her expertise by completing courses in sustainable textiles and packaging at TAMK. Her passion for life-wide learning and sustainability has led her to seek colleagues that share her enthusiasm, and she was one of the founding members of Ornamo Responsibility Circle, a peer network for sharing knowledge and ideas on sustainability.

Angelos Arnis is a strategic designer building systems and conditions that drive meaningful impact, encourage radical collaboration, and promote intentional change. He is using design to create more equitable conditions for the planet and its people. Currently leading his own practice as a solo entrepreneur and activist at Mesa. His award-winning work includes the Fennia Prize 22 for the OmaPosti app and recognition for branding projects, while his thought leadership extends to international speaking engagements and co-authoring the Ornamo Responsible Design Manifesto. He is the co-founder at Joint Frontiers and an alumnus organizer of Joint Futures, IxDA, UXHel, DSCONF, & Junction Hackathon.

Architect with a Master’s in Industrial Design, she is a doctoral candidate in Urban Planning. Her work combines systemic design and design reflection with ethnographic research, focusing on participatory processes, data visualization, and social innovation. With multiple publications, she has taught at various public and private institutions including UNAM, Universidad Iberoamericana, and EDINBA in Mexico and is active in academic networks and national and international collaborations. Since 2023, she is the Director of the School of Design at the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature in Mexico (EDINBA).

Industrial designer with a Master’s in Industrial Design and a PhD in Architecture, he teaches at UNAM, Universidad Iberoamericana, and EDINBA, where he currently coordinates the Master’s in Creativity for Design. His work merges heritage preservation with Industry 4.0 technologies such as 3D printing, IoT, mixed reality, and AI. A specialist in intellectual property, he promotes the protection of cultural and natural heritage. He has published internationally, supervised theses, and supported the development of Latin American fablabs.

With over three decades of experience as a graphic designer and education specialist, she has led design and research projects for public cultural institutions. She holds a Master’s degree in Creativity for Design from EDINBA and is a doctoral candidate in Cartographies of Contemporary Art at the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature in Mexico (INBAL). She served as EDINBA’s Director between 2005 and 2013 and coordinated its Master’s in Creativity for Design for a decade. She has organized major events such as the EDINBA anniversaries, the National Design Biennial in Mexico, and forums on design and education. She is a member of the Design Research Network for Social Development and currently teaches in EDINBA’s Master’s in Creativity for Design program.

Specialist in the intersection of technology, education, and design, he holds a PhD in Design from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro and teaches in the Master’s in Creativity for Design at EDINBA and at Universidad Iberoamericana as faculty member. Co-founder of “Otro Diseño es Posible”, a research group focused on interdisciplinary approaches to rethinking design in education, he has also organized the international MXRIO Design Conference. He is currently focused on providing a critical approach to design based on decolonialism, gender perspectives, and interculturality.

With a PhD in Social Studies, a Master’s in Administration and Public Policy, and a Bachelor’s in Economics he has been a faculty member of the Master’s in Creativity for Design at EDINBA since 2017. He has over 20 years of experience in public administration and policy, and has collaborated in institutions of related to education, economics, health, and human rights in the Mexican federal government. He has taught subjects in Public Finance and Federal Public Administration at the Universidad de las Américas in Mexico City, Universidad Iberoamericana, and UNITEC. His publications focus primarily on human rights and social policy.

Historian with a Master’s in Critical Theory and Philosophy of Science from UNAM, she researches digital divides, public policy advocacy networks, and the role of information technologies in the humanities and design. Her publications include work for DIRSI-CIDE, CEMEFI, Conapred, and the International Development Bank’s “Creative Economy” series. She served as the Coordinator of the Specialization in Creativity and Advertising Strategy at EDINBA, where she now teaches in the Master’s in Creativity for Design. She also teaches at UNAM and is an associate member of Telecom-CIDE.

Specialist in sustainable development, she integrates design, public policy, environmental law, and international cooperation. She holds an MPhil from the University of Cambridge and an LL.M. from Harvard Law School, with BA degrees in Economics and Law from ITAM – Mexico and PhD studies in International Environmental Law and Policy from the University of Cambridge. She has collaborated with the UNDP, IDLO, FAO REDD+, IFAD, and the Convention on Migratory Species. In Mexico, she has worked with the federal government and the Senate. She has participated in design conferences focusing on sustainability, interspecies design, and AI. She is currently a faculty member of the Master’s in Creativity for Design at EDINBA.

She holds a PhD in Design from the University of São Paulo, with prior degrees in Visual Arts and a Master’s in Industrial Design from UNAM. As a scholar of FONCA-CONACYT, her research spans cultural studies, design history, and material culture in Latin America. She has researched Cuban and Brazilian approximations to design based on a decolonial perspective. She is a faculty member in both the Master’s in Creativity for Design and the Master’s in Critic and Theory of Design at EDINBA.

Graphic designer from EDINBA with more than 30 years of experience working on, editorial design, art event production, and spatial appropriation strategies through art. She holds a a PhD in Cartographies of Contemporary Art from INBAL and a Master’s in Communication and Visual Languages from Iconos. She has collaborated with institutions such as FCE, UNAM, INAH, INBAL, and FAB. She started working at EDINBA 20 years ago, where she tutors across academic levels and coordinated the Specialization in Editorial Design, collaborating in curriculum redesign. She is a member of the Design Research Network for Social Development and a faculty member of the Master’s in Creativity for Design.