Image by Thomas & Jurgen | Design Innovation Sessions, Dutch Design Week 2026

Design Innovation Sessions | Dutch Design Week 2026

07/09/26

From 20 to 22 October 2026, CLICKNL presents the Design Innovation Sessions at Natlab during Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven. Across three focused morning sessions, design, research and practice come together around different societal challenges. Through keynotes, inspiring projects and collaborative conversations, the programme explores how design-driven approaches can contribute to societal change and innovation.

20 October | Thriving Planet: The Smart Weaving Mill

How can circular fashion and textile initiatives grow beyond their niche and work at scale? The session explores how digital technologies can change the way fashion and textiles are designed and produced, and what it takes to turn promising approaches into scalable processes.

Keynote speaker Dominic Sluiter, co-founder of EnhanceThat, will share what years of digital change in fashion companies have taught him about what actually works, what does not, and why smaller brands have a unique opportunity to drive change. Jirka Rajme, researcher at Saxion University of Applied Sciences, will share insights from the DPP4CD project on Digital Product Passports for circular denim. The session is moderated by Linda Vermaat, moderator, social innovation advocate and former director of Innofest.

21 October | Digital Futures: The AI We Choose

Generative AI can write, design and create in seconds, but does that make it creative, and who actually benefits? This session explores the tensions GenAI brings to the creative industries, from measuring machine creativity to safeguarding human work.

Keynote speaker Kars Alfrink, postdoctoral researcher at TU Delft, will explore emerging design practices that work with these tensions and offer concrete glimpses of better digital futures. Monika Kackovic and Ana Oprescu will share insights from the SafeGenAI research project, while Daniëlle Arets, Crown Member of the Council for Culture and Professor of Designing Journalism at Fontys University of Applied Sciences, will discuss AI as a cultural technology and the role of the cultural and creative sector in responsible AI. Jop Quirindongo, founder of Lowres Creative Studio, brings another perspective from the creative sector. The session is moderated by Dymphie Braun, programme maker, facilitator and strategist working across art, design, digital culture and storytelling.

22 October | Health & Well-Being: Care by Design

How can design and MedTech contribute to healthcare innovations that respond to real needs and work in practice? From wearable treatments to soft robotic artificial hearts, the session explores what it takes to create healthcare innovations that address unmet needs and work in practice.

Keynote speaker Eline van Beest, Operating Partner at Thuja Capital and Professor of Practice at TU Delft, will draw on the Biodesign approach to explore why successful innovation starts with deeply understanding the unmet need. Marina Toeters, initiator of by-wire.net and designer involved in Bilihome, will share how a design perspective shaped the development of wearable phototherapy for babies with jaundice. Bas Overvelde, Full Professor at Eindhoven University of Technology, and Arie Paul van den Beukel, Professor of Applied Research in Industrial Design at Saxion University of Applied Sciences, will share insights from the Holland Hybrid Heart project. The session is moderated by Nathan de Groot, moderator, creative facilitator and event designer.

All sessions run from 11:15 to 12:30, followed by a networking lunch until 13:30. The sessions are held in English and are part of Dutch Design Week’s Mission Days.
Participation is free, but registration is required. All attendees receive a free Dutch Design Week wristband.

More Information: www.clicknl.nl/en/dis-2026/

Last updated: 14/09/26