Last year, IDC created a new opportunity exclusively for Canadian interior design students. The purpose of the Innovation in Design Thinking: Student Competition is to provide students with a national platform to demonstrate the value of interior design and illustrate the positive impact design has on the users of the spaces, supported by evidence-based research. Entries may be concepts or innovative processes at any scale or in any sector. Submissions must clearly communicate the intended value to the people, business, or society at large.
Sara (Sonia) Namdarian, Interior Designer, Associate Professional Member, IIDA, IDC
Sara Namdarian is an interior designer, currently residing in Vancouver, B.C. She is a professional associate member of IDC and IIDA. After her graduation in Interior Architecture and Architecture Science from universities in the UK and Malaysia, she built her academic career by teaching and leading many international students at various Malaysian universities as a full-time educator, guest speaker, and industrial advisor; she has also been a juror for many international Interior Architecture awards and was recently a juror for IIDA. She entered the Interior Architecture industry in 2013 by establishing her design firm in Melaka and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. She has accomplished more than 40 projects commercial and residential sectors in Malaysia, Iran, and the UK.
Seng Sengsavanh, M.Ed, B.Sc.ID, IDEC, FT Faculty – Interior Design, LaSalle College Vancouver
Seng Sengsavanh is a passionate and empathetic designer and educator. He started his career in interior design back in 1999 and has since practiced at several of the leading interior design firms in greater Vancouver and on many award-winning projects across Canada and in Washington State. He started teaching interior design in 2005 and soon became the Academic Director of the Interior Design programs the Art Institute of Vancouver (now LaSalle College Vancouver). After a seven-year stint in academic administration roles, he returned to the practice of interior design in 2014 to 2020 where he took on leadership roles in design, marketing, and team management as senior interior designer and office lead. Since then, Seng has returned to his passion of teaching and is now a full-time faculty member at LaSalle College Vancouver. In addition to teaching technical and interior design studio courses, Seng has also used his multidisciplinary background to develop and teach courses in Art Foundations (Fundamentals of Design) and Graphic Design (Design Thinking).
The deadline to submit entries has now passed. IDC Student members will be honoured at an awards celebration this fall. In addition, all winning projects will be profiled on IDC’s website, newsletter, and promoted on IDC’s social media channels.
Please contact communications@idcanada.org with your inquiries.
