Events will be held March 24-26, 2027 in the downtown Elon office
Elon University’s Center for Design Thinking will be hosting its annual Design Forge conference this spring on March 24-25, along with a Forging Fridays Writing Fellowship on March 26.
Design Forge is Elon’s annual convening of design thinking educators, practitioners and thought leaders. Each year, Design Forge addresses a topic of interest to higher education, strengthens collaboration in the design thinking community and searches for new opportunities for design thinking to enhance student learning.
With the return of Design Forge in 2027, this year’s theme is centered on the idea of cultivation. Educators and thought leaders within design thinking will connect cultivation to themes on nourishing future generations, cultivating resilient and diverse communities, refining with ourselves and others, and reframing design as a process of cultivation.
In addition to the two-day events during Forge, in-person attendees can choose to attend the additional Forging Fridays Writing Fellowship to receive consultation and support on cultivating success on creating, writing, and publishing their own works.
Design Forge 2027 is taking place after a unique year of organizing virtual Forging Fridays, culminating in the Center jointly hosting the Future of Design in Higher Education convening with Duke University in June 2026. Past Forge themes have explored topics such as designing for well-being, project-based learning and intergenerational communities.
For participants wanting to attend Design Forge in-person, please contact Center for Design Thinking Director Danielle Lake at dlake@elon.edu. Interested attendees outside of Elon University faculty can complete a brief registration grant application that is available for those seeking financial support. Design Forge 2027 can also be attended online.