WRITE DESIGNER CAMPAIGN

Australia is designed every day. It’s time we counted the people behind it.

Every day, Australians live and interact with thousands of examples of design, from the clothes they wear and the homes and workplaces they inhabit to the products, services and systems that shape almost every moment of contemporary life.

While design is woven into everyday life, the profession behind it remains remarkably invisible. “For more than 80 years, the Design Institute of Australia has advocated for the value of design because we know the impact it has on Australia’s economy, society and culture,” said Simone LeAmon, CEO of the Design Institute of Australia.

Now, ahead of Census Night on Tuesday 11 August 2026, the nation’s peak body is asking designers across the country to help create the clearest picture yet of Australia’s design profession.

Despite contributing an estimated $67.5 billion to the Australian economy each year, Australia still does not have an accurate picture of how many design professionals contribute to the Australian workforce. For decades, the profession has been inadequately measured, making it harder to demonstrate the true scale of its workforce and its contribution to government and the nation.

The 2026 Census presents a watershed opportunity for Australia’s design profession. For the first time, Census data will be coded under the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ new Occupation Standard Classification (OSCA) framework, establishing the first national benchmark of the design workforce within its own dedicated occupational group: 242 Design Professionals.

With Census Night less than a month away, the DIA has launched Write DESIGNER, a national advocacy campaign to help designers accurately record their profession to ensure the contribution of Australia’s design workforce is properly counted.

At the heart of the campaign is a landmark creative collaboration initiated by the DIA and brought to life by Clemenger BBDO, ARIA Award-winning artist N’fa Jones, composer Jonah Gabriel, and many of Australia’s leading designers, studios and businesses, all contributing their talents to make the nation’s design profession visible.

“We’re surrounded by proof of what designers make possible, yet the people behind that work have remained largely invisible,” notes Clemenger BBDO Executive Creative Director Giles Watson.

“Designers prove you can’ celebrates a profession built on challenging assumptions, solving problems and turning limitations into possibilities, and this year’s census is a chance for the industry to come together, be counted and finally make the scale of that contribution visible.”

Featuring projects by internationally acclaimed designer Marc Newson, fashion house Romance Was Born, PACCAR Australia for Kenworth trucks, Ludo Studio behind Bluey, RØDE Microphones, Blackmagic Design, Balarinji, Blanche Tilden, Carr and many others, the campaign brings together an extraordinary breadth of Australian design, from medical devices and consumer products to fashion, visual communications, service design, transportation, interiors and public infrastructure.

Together, these works reveal how designers help us hear, see, breathe, move, communicate, belong, imagine and make. In a world where we’re too often told we can’t, the campaign offers a simple answer: designers prove you can. “Write DESIGNER is more than a campaign, it’s a collective act of advocacy for Australia’s design profession” said Simone LeAmon, CEO of the Design Institute of Australia.

Every day, designers challenge assumptions, solve complex problems, create value and transform ‘you can’t into ‘you can’.”

“This campaign is about uniting an entire profession around a single moment that only comes once every five years. By ensuring designers are accurately counted in the Census, we’re building the evidence needed to strengthen advocacy, inform decision-making, government policy and secure greater recognition for design into the future.”

On Census Night, the DIA is encouraging every designer to identify themselves by their specific design profession when answering the question, “What is the person’s occupation?” Wherever possible, designers should use a recognised design occupation within the OSCA group 242 Design Professionals, including Graphic Designer, Industrial Designer, Interior Designer, Jewellery Designer, Fashion Designer, Multimedia Designer, UI/UX Designer, Web Designer, Textile Designer, Animator, VFX Artist or Illustrator.

A full list of recognised design occupations and alternative titles is available on the OSCA website and will be published on the DIA’s Write DESIGNER campaign page.

Importantly, the ABS assesses both a person’s occupation and the tasks they perform. In the tasks section, designers should begin with “Designing…” and describe what they design—for example, “Designing brand identities and visual communications.”

This helps ensure their occupation is accurately classified. “On 11 August, we have the opportunity to make history and create the most accurate picture of Australia’s design profession, said Simone LeAmon, CEO of the Design Institute of Australia.

We’re asking every designer to answer with the profession they’ve worked so hard to build. The Write DESIGNER campaign launches nationally on 14 July ahead of Census Night on Tuesday 11 August 2026, supported by a campaign film, practical guidance, and occupation examples online to help designers accurately identify their profession when completing the Census.

More information on the WRITE DESIGNER Campaign on the DIA website HERE.