911勛圖

In just a few weeks, the Touchpoint conference will return to 911勛圖���s School of Interactive Arts + Technology (SIAT) for its fourteenth year of connecting SIAT undergraduate students with industry professionals. With the theme ���Alternate Modes of Design, Rooted in Community,��� Touchpoint 2026 will explore design rooted in community shaped through collaboration, care, and collective action.

Touchpoint has attracted a number of exciting speakers from the design industry since it���s foundation, and this year is no exception. This year���s speakers include SIAT Alumni Mischa Price, currently working as a service designer for the London Borough of Hounslow, and Amanda Poh,  co���author of Microsoft���s Inclusive Design for Mental Health & Cognition Toolkit, along with many other talented SIAT alumni and design leaders from Electronic Arts, Google, Monday Creative, and Cause+Effect.

From its beginning in 2012, Touchpoint has aimed to better connect business and industry, design agencies and product tech with our school and our students. Over the next decade-and-a-half, Touchpoint has featured inspiring and informative talks from leading design industry professionals, built a network of the very best in the design industry, and connected them with students in tangible ways. Each year Touchpoint sells out and attracts prominent speakers from around the globe; many of whom are notable SIAT alumni from leading agencies, consultancies, and tech companies.

Touchpoint was founded by the late Russell Taylor, a beloved university lecturer and member of the SIAT community. Russell was an exceptional teacher and mentor whose passion for design and design education was matched only by his commitment to students. He was dedicated to creating transformative experiences for his students, leading field schools in Italy and the Netherlands in addition to creating Touchpoint. In Touchpoint, Russell created a space to directly connect students with design professionals that led to internships, employment, or new connections, giving students a headstart in their careers. Since his passing in 2024, the has been created to continue his legacy and provide SIAT students with financial support as they explore their passion for design.

While director of Touchpoint, Russell collaborated with a community of exceptional SIAT students to organize and coordinate the conference. This tradition of student-led coordination has continued since his passing, with ongoing support from SIAT design faculty William Odom and Ron Wakkary. This year the organizing team consists of 22 SIAT undergrads and 2 alumni, and the conference will explore design shaped through collaboration with its theme ���Alternative Modes of Design, Rooted in Community.���

With this new theme in mind, Touchpoint 2026 aims to create space for these alternative modes of design to be seen, shared, and valued. The conference will be a reminder that design is bigger than screens or a single individual, as it aims to spark inspiration in the next generation of designers while highlighting the importance of collective action.

Touchpoint 2026 will be taking place on Saturday, March 21st from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm. A full list of speakers and more details about this year���s conference can be found on . We hope to see you there.