Industrial Design Conferences IDSA 95 The 1995 annual conference of Industrial Designers Society of America, entitled "Natural Resources", took place in Santa Fe in September and was organised by Tucker Viemeister of Smart Design in New York (of Good Grips fame). Keynote speakers included Dr.Murray Gell-Mann, the Nobel Prize-winning physicist who discovered the Quark. He spoke about the need for Utopian models "not as blueprints but as aids to the imagination". Paola Antonelli of Italy gave a presentation about design exhibitions she has recently curated in Italy, France and the United States - she is design curator of the Museum of Modern Art in New York where she organized the Mutant Materials exhibition. A number of papers and discussions focussed on environmental issues related to product design. Phillip White of NV Philips Corporate Design, Eindhoven discussed ecological design, life cycle assessment and the Sima Pro software package which has newly enlarged databases for carrying out product environmental assessments. Educators' papers included a proposal for a Global Studio Project via the Internet, by Lauren McDermott of Arizona State, and Design Education for Life on Earth by Michael Shannon, founder of the Center for Design Studies, which looked at the meaning and value of design beyond its material associations. Stuart Walker gave a paper which explored the relationship between the spiritual and the material and its implications for environmentally responsible decision making. A complete set of educators' papers from the conference is available from The Industrial Designers Society of America, 1142 Walker Road, Great Falls, VA 22066-1836, USA, price US$ 25.00. World Design 96 Next year's IDSA conference is entitled World Design 96 and for the first time the annual IDEA awards will be chosen from an international forum. The conference is scheduled for September 18-21, 1996 at Disney World, Orlando - the venue will be Michael Graves' Walt Disney World Dolphin Hotel. For more information contact the IDSA at the above address or fax 703-759-7679. ICSID 97 In 1993 Canada won approval to host the 1997 International Congress of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID) in Toronto. Canada's winning bid was based on the theme of the Humane Village - "as a symbol of a place - or enterprise - where people could find themselves able to lead balanced, joyful, renewing and creative lives." The Humane Village will be compassionate, creative and self renewing. More than a place, it is a strategy for achieving a newly effective economy and society." The concept, proposed by Alexander Manu "as a necessary next step to follow Marshall McLuhan's 'Global Village,'" offers opportunities to bring Canadian design to an international audience. For more information contact The Humane Village Centre for Compassionate Design, 65 Bellwoods Avenue, Toronto, Ontario, M6J 3N4, Fax (+1 416) 364-1530, E-mail 72123.772@compuserve.com. Copies of The Humane Village Journal, published four times a year are also available from the above address, $20 for single copies, $60 for a year's subscription.

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