The IIDA and the Interior Designers of Canada (IDC) will be hosting the Leaders Breakfast on April 13 in Vancouver at the Pan Pacific Vancouver Hotel.
The annual international event celebrates design in the global marketplace by honouring individuals who are both the legacy and future of design.
Every year a chosen city hosts a breakfast that features a renowned keynote speaker and recognizes one city-selected honouree who has made significant contributions to the design industry.
Carol Jones will be honoured at this year’s breakfast event. Before retiring from practice, Jones was a principal and vice-president, interior design, at Kasian Architecture Interior Design and Planning Ltd, and her professional experience has included practice in several Canadian cities as well as teaching appointments at two universities.
Jones’ focus on design for the high-performance workplace for both the private and public sector has earned her the title of expert on workplace programming and planning. She speaks and writes on professional development topics both nationally and internationally, and projects under her leadership have been widely published and have received numerous awards.
In addition to her more than 40 years of experience in interior design, Jones has had a parallel career as a volunteer on professional boards. These include president of IDC in 1991 and 2020 and chair of the IDC Foundation, president of IIDA in 1999 and chair of the IIDA Foundation, and service on the boards of CIDA and CIDQ.
In 2010, she was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.) by Kwantlen Polytechnic University for her contributions to the design profession.
The keynote speaker will be Cheryl S. Durst, executive vice president and CEO IIDA.
With 15,000 members across 58 countries, Durst oversees the strategic direction of IIDA, heading its international board and setting an agenda that leads the industry in creating community, advancing advocacy, and continuing decades of work toward equity. She is a member of the International WELL Building Institute Governance Council; as well as a trustee for Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art and the NYSID.
