'TO ·BE·LONGING Portraits of Queer Living' by Quan Thai. Photo by Albert Hoang, courtesy of Ace Hotel.

Submission Deadline
Friday, September 25, 2026 by 11:59pm ET

DesignTO Talks
‘Be Our Guest ’

‘Be Our Guest’ is a half day of talks exploring the home, neighbourhood, and city through radical welcoming.

Centred on two spheres of conversation — A Spatial Welcome and A Cultural Welcome — the program invites us to consider: What does it mean to be a host? How might domestic settings and public spaces echo and enrich one another? How can gestures of welcome and intimacy take shape across different scales? What helps a space feel open, familiar, and inviting? How do food, art, architecture, and traditions bring culture to life? And how can placemaking create a deeper sense of belonging?

From these questions, the conversation unfolds across many scales of hospitality: from the home to the sidewalk to the neighbourhood and ultimately to the city.

Talks may be about current research, projects or case studies, new products or technologies, spaces or experiences, speculative design or strategies, or new processes or policies.

Key prompts:

  • What does it mean to be a host?
  • In public venues and places, moving towards an approach of “more doors, more welcome”
  • Resonances between a domestic setting and the public sphere
  • Scaling intimacy / intimacy at different scales
  • The role of the unexpected and ad hoc
  • How design can nurture informal gatherings and uses of space that foster a sense of civic “ownership”
  • The role of cities as hosts: creating spaces where newcomers, guests, and diverse communities feel welcome, recognized, and able to build a sense of belonging

‘Be Our Guest’ is organized by DesignTO and Allies and Morrison (AAM), building on DesignTO’s portfolio of talks and symposia and AAM’s annual Citymakers program.

All submissions must include the following:

  • A description of your talk topic (max. 500 words);
  • A short bio on you and/or your creative practice (max. 150 words);
  • 1-3 visuals of your work (max. 1MB per image), or a link(s) to a video (if available); and
  • Your
    • contact info (name, email, phone number, mailing address)
    • a CV, and
    • website URL, X and Instagram handles (if available).

Deadlines

Submissions are due Friday, September 25, 2026 by 11:59pm ET.

Submit to ‘DesignTO Talks: Be Our Guest’

FAQ

There is no fee for this submission. A modest speaker’s fee will be paid to successful applicants.

This event runs 1-day during the DesignTO Festival, January 22 – 31, 2027. Date and times will be confirmed by October 2026. This event will be held in-person at the Ace Hotel Toronto. We reserve the right to modify dates, times or delivery methods if required.

‘DesignTO Talks’ is a signature program of DesignTO, a charitable arts organization that produces Canada’s largest and leading annual design festival. Past events in the series have included keynote presentations by internationally renowned designers, interdisciplinary panel discussions, and the long-running DesignTO Symposium.

Successful submissions will be notified by email in mid-October 2026.

Email questions to Renée Powell-Hines, Festival Coordinator, at [email protected] with this subject line: Be Our Guest + your name.