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Dec 04, 2024 By Laura Botham
Making a Better Future with Kimball International
Learn how Kimball International and IIDA are partnering to invest in the spirit of foresight for our industry's future
By Laura Botham Dec 04, 2024
Published in Foundation

Young and emerging designers are often brimming with bright ideas that could spark a better future, but they’re also facing new technologies, a rapidly changing climate, and social inequities that are markedly different than generations before. As they develop their vision to address these and other future challenges, they could benefit from industry investment and support.

That’s why commercial furnishings company Kimball International is partnering with IIDA to launch the Kimball International Makers of a Better Future fund—to invest in the transformative vision of emerging talent. The fund will award two (Associate or Professional) IIDA members who have visionary design practices that advance technology, sustainability, or social evolution.

Prime candidates will be designers poised to make a positive impact on the world who could use just a little help to get there—whether that’s financial support, or meeting the right people. With a $2,500 cash prize and a complimentary trip to the IIDA Annual Meeting ahead of NeoCon, awardees will have both a financial boost and the chance to meet the movers and shakers in the industry and expand their network.

Michelle Boolton, Ind. IIDA
, Vice President of A&D at Kimball and IIDA International Board Member explains, “Through the Makers of a Better Future fund, we’re fostering a new generation of designers who will revolutionize how we live, work, and gather. Their visionary solutions will shape our world for the better.”

By helping ease financial and networking barriers, the fund will empower visionaries to pursue their innovative ideas more freely. Kimball’s Vice President of Brand, Digital, and Insights Marketing, Workplace and Health Jessica Gubbins weighs in, “This program will cultivate a new generation of designers who are equipped to tackle complex problems with creative and sustainable solutions. Ultimately, we hope to drive the industry forward, fostering a culture of innovation and responsibility that benefits society as a whole.”

We are excited to advance the design industry together with this award next year, with applications opening February 3, 2025. Learn more here

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