Upcoming Events

Breaking the Cycle — How Designers Shape Measurable Sustainable Outcomes

This interactive breakfast session places delegates in mixed-discipline roundtables to explore one key challenge:

What does it take to design a genuinely eco‑friendly space - from first concept to end‑of‑life?

Participants will map the full journey while designing a small rectangular guest space (bedroom + wet room), developing practical, actionable guidelines that support creative ambition while driving measurable sustainability outcomes across the built environment.

Discussion Themes:

Early prompts to steer the conversation include:

• Designing backwards: At the concept stage, how do we plan for reuse, disassembly, and end‑of‑life?
• Collaboration & workflow: What sequence of conversations must take place, and between which stakeholders?
• Material and operational performance: What characteristics should materials and systems have to meet sustainability goals?
• Defining sustainability: What attributes - circularity, resource efficiency, reduced waste, lower transport impacts - differentiate sustainable choices from conventional solutions?
• The designer’s lever: At which stages can designers exert the greatest influence?
• Challenging norms: Where can we rethink traditional procurement or usage models (e.g., leasing equipment or modular components)?

Our expert panel will be on hand throughout to pose questions, share insights, and support each group’s thinking.

Speakers to be announced soon.

This session will take place alongside CSI Design Expo Americas and Hotel & Resort Design South, at the Miami Beach Convention Center.

Secure your spot - sign up for free

This Working Group Lunch will highlight case studies and companies that are at the forefront of sustainability across hospitality interior design. Specifiers, suppliers, and sustainability specialists will meet in this collaborative environment to exchange ideas, share progress, and together take the next steps towards a more sustainable future.

This content session and networking lunch will take place alongside CSI Design Expo Europe 2026 at the Hamburg Messe and Congress.

More details to be announced soon.

Online Session: Cradle to Cradle Certified®: A Circularity Masterclass

This exclusive session, delivered in collaboration with CSI+, offers an in-depth look at the updated Cradle to Cradle sustainability assessment. Led by Ren DeCherney, it will explore the most current, product-level approaches to assessing and measuring sustainability – including how to track, present, and communicate key data to demonstrate ROI for stakeholders at every level.

As a member of the Sustainable Design Summit community you're invited to join this upcoming CSI+ online session.

Registration is free for:

• Interior designers and specifier at cruise lines, hotels, and airlines.

• Procurement Firms & Project Management Consultants

• OEMs
• Sustainability Specialists
• Press - Editors and Journalists

Hamburg Working Group Lunch: From Ideas to Impact: It Starts with You!

Sustainability in design doesn’t happen in isolation — it begins with the choices, actions, and collaborations we make every day. This interactive Working Group invites you to step beyond theory and actively shape the conversation.

Together, we’ll:

• Evaluate individual progress and share lessons learned from real-world pilots and partnerships
• Explore a case study on how sustainable outcomes are chosen and implemented
• Use live Slido polling to pinpoint challenges, identify gaps, and highlight opportunities for collaboration across the supply chain
• Take part in an open Q&A, contribute your own perspectives, and help build a practical roadmap for next steps. Unlike a traditional panel, the audience becomes the driving force.
• Engage in peer-to-peer discussions over the networking lunch which follows.

We encourage you to come prepared with your questions and shared learnings for a dynamic interactive conversation.

This session is free-to-attend is will take place alongside CSI Design Expo Europe, 3 - 4 December, Hamburg Messe + Congress.

Sponsored by:

Harmony Marine Solutions

Miami: Reducing the mid-life waste crisis

This session continues the conversation on how to reduce waste in refurbishments developing from previous Sustainable Design Summit working groups. Speakers will provide recent updates on circularity projects, sharing their experiences and insights into the ‘how’ when it comes to circularity - and demonstrating the all-important ‘why’ which backs the business case. 

• Comprehensive refits at 10 – 15 years include replacing carpets and thousands of loose furniture items
• AIDA Evolution: closed-loop carpet initiatives demonstrate full circularity in action
• Breaking down barriers in furniture donations
• Bringing circularity on board vessels for true sustainability outcomes 
• Reducing the mid-life waste crisis can also meet the business case
• Beyond the demolition plan: how to make reduction and recycling a seamless process in hotel refurbishments

This session is free to attend and will be held in person as part of the conference programme at Cruise Ship Interiors Design Expo Americas, 3 - 4 June, Miami Beach Convention Center.

To join, simply register for your complimentary pass here.

London: Working Group Lunch & Product Showcase

Circular resilience: Closing the loop of critical raw materials

Sustainable Design Summit 2023 discussed the imminent critical raw materials regulations, and the context around the drivers for change. This Working Group will provide an important update on the introduction of the new regulations - which have now come into force.

Our expert panel will explore what are the key imperatives for achieving full circularity of aluminium. Attendees will leave with an insightful update on the regulations and what those mean for designing and manufacturing travel interiors. The roundtable session will share some inspiring actionable ideas around the opportunities which the regulations are driving, and some next steps delegates can take when they return to the office.

Attend this session to join an exploration of what it takes to deliver on circularity in critical raw materials. This Working Group will generate ideas for a live pilot in aluminium circularity.

• Update on the critical raw materials regulations and recognising the business opportunity
• Critical Raw Materials: how regulatory drivers are providing new business opportunities in the circular economy
• Aluminium balcony furniture pilot: what are the aims to make aluminium truly circular?
• Understanding key imperatives for building an efficient ecosystem
• Collaboration & the circularity of aluminium – the benefits of larger volumes for economies of scale and working with internal and external stakeholders
• How can we connect circular economies across our sectors in terms of infrastructure, processing capacity and volumes?
• Takeaway: How to get started with eco-design that demonstrates both improved sustainable outcomes and a positive business case?

The event features a zero-waste Product Showcase of sustainable products, materials, and solutions and a networking lunch, allowing participants to discover new products and connect with like-minded peers. 

This Working Group Lunch will take place alongside CSI Design Expo Europe at ExCeL London.

Places in this roundtable session and networking lunch are now full, however please use the form to join the waiting list. 

Sponsored by:

Online Working Group

Breaking from the norm: Designing with radical thinking

This session explores how to challenge conventional thinking to drive necessary changes in hospitality travel interior design. It identifies roadblocks to sustainable outcomes, manages social perceptions of impact and sustainability, and aims to redefine guest experience by moving away from superficial features.

• Futurescape – how to break with current thinking to bring about the change that’s needed?
• Identifying the roadblocks which are stopping progress on sustainable outcomes in interiors
• Impact and sustainability – managing social perceptions
• Changing the customer experience – how can we move away from Whistles & Bells, and re-design what’s included in the service?
• How can we go about taking insights and translating those into new ideas, new processes
• Key tips on holding the budget parameters conversation (why develop a great sustainable solution if the client is just going to choose the cheapest option when it comes down to it?)
• Defining new sustainability partnerships and business models through radical thinking

The session will be hosted on the interactive roundtable events platform, Remo.

Miami Working Group Breakfast

Refurbishments: A circularity state of mind

Sustainable Design Summit breakout sessions come to Miami! During this in-person Working Group, suppliers and buyers will have the opportunity to participate in a hands-on workshop covering key sustainable topics: 

• Developing a circularity mindset – how to embed responsible thinking and values?
• From product life cycle to the sustainability ecosystem: what are the tools, tactics and partnerships which promote full circularity?
• Simple approaches to lifetime extension of products in hospitality interiors
• How does circularity fit with the business case in the context of refurbishments?
• What does the re-manufacturing flowchart look like: case studies & examples

This event begins with a networking breakfast, ahead of the content and collaboration, and will take place alongside CSI Design Expo Americas and the co-located Hotel & Resort Design South at the Miami Beach Convention Center.

Places in this roundtable session and networking breakfast are now full. Please join the waitlist.

Online Working Group
Impact analytics + 10 ways to use your data to drive sustainability improvements

Delegates from Sustainable Design Summit 2023 discussed what the numbers tell us, and how design and procurement teams can work with their supply chain partners to improve environmental outcomes.

The first of this year's Working Group's continues the conversation by providing some practical insights into carbon assessments; using real data; and how best to analyse environmental impacts of materials used in hospitality travel interiors.

Design and procurement teams will leave this workshop with a deeper understanding of:

• The three ways to understand how the products you specify support circularity, embodied carbon, and minimize waste
• The power of Impact Analytics and how data is making sustainable design easy
• Factors which impact net positive outcomes
• How to select vendors and products using product lifecycle impact-based data and analytics
• Designing and procuring healthy interiors with a lower carbon footprint
• How to hold a conversation with supply chain partners around reducing waste and both operational and embodied carbon
• Project spotlights: hear from Hyatt Hotels Corporation on the success factors of their recent projects

Sustainable Design Summit is about making connections and sharing knowledge across the hospitality travel sectors. This Working Group will share interactions between cruise, hotel, aircraft – as well as automotives and rail sectors.

JoAnna Abrams, CEO of Mindclick will also provide a trend analysis from across multiple brand projects and will be joined by:

Fred L Brandstrader, Vice President - Construction and Capital Expenditures, Hyatt Hotels Corporation
Pipa Bradbury, Interior Design Leader & Principal, DLR Group
Vanessa Vu, Senior Interior Designer & Associate, DLR Group

This online session will be ran on the interactive roundtable events platform, Remo.