When I joined a group of friends & fellow designers as part of the organizing committee for the IxDA’s Interaction Awards (think of them as Interaction Design’s very own “Oscars”), I didn’t think we’d have to think about an awards ceremony being entirely remote due to the global pandemic.

(Thanks, 2020).

Needless to say, many things had to be reconsidered and… well, redesigned.

But there were other things we wanted to add, like the ability to submit projects in languages other than English; special attention to diversity and inclusion from the selection of projects to the ceremony itself… —and a podcast.

These days, when many of us spend so much time in front of a screen (working/socializing) due to the pandemic lockdown, content in audio-only form can feel rather refreshing. Podcasts in general have been gaining more & more popularity in the last few years.

We thought sharing Interaction Awards-content with a Podcast would resonate with designers who might be interested in submitting a project for consideration.

So, Distinguished Design was created.

On this podcast, we go explain the meaning & purpose of the Awards; talk to members of the planning committee, the jury & past winners who share their unique stories of how winning an Interaction Award has impacted their careers & lives.

And yes: we even have one or two episodes en Español!

It’s been an absolute pleasure & honour to host & produce this content, which we started back in September of this year. We will continue releasing episodes until sometime after the Interaction Awards ceremony in February of 2021.

Distinguished Design episodes are available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & Google Podcasts.

We sincerely hope you like them.

Thanks for listening!