For the past 50 years, the Interior Design Educators Council has met annually to learn, inspire, and advance the interior design profession. This year's annual conference will celebrate that rich history while focusing on the future vitality of the profession as it grows and evolves.
The conference, to be held March 19 - 22, 2012 at the Hyatt Regency on the Inner Harbor in Baltimore, MD, will feature memorabilia displays and history videos. "Along with the celebration of the past, attendees will get a glimpse into the future with three special events," said 2011 IDEC President Lisa Waxman, Florida State University.
Included in the conference schedule are two keynote presentations. On Monday evening, Jo Heinz, interior designer and managing principal of Staffelbach in Dallas, will share her vision of the future of the interior design profession. The following morning, Roz Cama, President and Principal Interior Designer of CAMA, Inc. in New Haven, CT, and author of Evidence-Based Healthcare Design, will also share insight into the future of interior design.
The insights from these two sessions will be further discussed during the IDEC Fellows Forum were conference attendees will discuss ways to share the value of interior design with the university, community, and public at large. Panelists will discuss ways interior design has been embraced outside traditional venues, ways good design has been brought to those who might not have access to it, and creative ways to advocate for the profession.
Preconference education sessions are still being planned, but already confirmed is the Journal of Interior Design writers workshop and the Council for Interior Design Accreditation (CIDA) workshop. Two new interactive features at this year's conference is the Village Square Critical Issues Session, where panelists will share experience on pressing issues before opening the session to group discussion, and IDEC's first Pecha Kucha Night, a fast-paced focus on creative teaching ideas.
Each year, the organizing committee plans conference tours so that attendees can experience the culture and flavor of the host city. This year's tours include a day in Washington, DC to view the US Green Building Council LEED platinum offices and NCIDQ's new headquarters, designed by Perkins+Will where interior spaces were designed for teamwork and collaboration. Other tour options are a visit to Homewood and Evergreen, two historic Baltimore homes; and an afternoon excursion to Mount Vernon Cultural District and Fells Point Historic District.
The IDEC Annual Conference is open to everyone in the interior design industry including educators and students at design schools, colleges and universities; interior design practitioners; industry partners; and publishers. Registrations before February 2, 2012 are discounted to $445 versus the regular registration rate of $520 or the on-site registration fee of $595. The conference also has a non-member and student registration rates.