News

As of June 1st, 2021, the Association has moved into a new Professional Development cycle which runs until June 30th, 2023.

Professional Development is an important component of our work collectively as a registered profession and individually as members of ARIDO. Like members of many other professions, such as architects, lawyers, and doctors, interior designers have an ongoing commitment in the public interest to keep our knowledge and expertise up to date with the current standards and practises in the field. This continuous growth and development in our professional body of knowledge is one of the most critical distinctions that sets ARIDO members apart from unqualified individuals who are not held to any professional standard and have no requirements for professional development whatsoever.

ARIDO provides many opportunities to complete structured learning CEUs during the Ontario Summit and ARIDO AGM, as well as the CEU listings via ARIDO Access, and at local ARIDO Chapter events.

The ARIDO AGM taking place March 29, 30, 31 will offer several opportunities to complete up to 9 PD credits, 2 of which are HS. You are encouraged to attend or review the sessions after the event.
This new cycle also introduces the recognition of equity, diversity, and inclusion as General Education learning topics available to members, in accordance with our Equity, Diversity, Advancement, and Accessibility Strategic Pillar. By intentionally continuing the dialogue through these recognized General Education topics, we are able to focus on building an association that advances equity, diversity, accessibility, and inclusion in the interior design profession and in our communities through the work that we complete.

As we continue this journey together, we welcome our members to join in the dialogue and participate in the many opportunities to develop our individual and collective understanding of these important issues. ARIDO will recognize a wide array of topic areas such as recognizing unconscious bias, creating an equitable workplace, reconciliation, designing more accessible and inclusive spaces, leadership development, and building a culture of inclusion, as examples. You will also see new programming in this area of education from ARIDO throughout 2022.

I encourage you to view your professional development credits as an extension of your ongoing professional practice and use the opportunity to deepen your understanding of a niche or developing component of the field that is important to you and/or your practice. You are also strongly encouraged to complete and report your professional development throughout the cycle to prevent missing out on great learning and growth opportunities and to avoid rushing at the eleventh hour for credits. 

Each of us has chosen this profession because of our passion for designing spaces with the end-user in mind. Our field is constantly developing and there are always new insights to learn from other professionals and to better serve those individuals who use the spaces we design.

The Professional Development page in ARIDOaccess provides all the information you need about completing credits, learning topics, and resources where you can find credits to complete PD in subjects which interest you.

Throughout this cycle, Jose Tanabe (jtanabe@arido.ca), Regulatory Coordinator is available to answer your questions about completing and reporting Professional Development, and ARIDO has also produced a short video that explains how to report. 

Sincerely, Nadia Kuhni

ARIDO President 2021/22