The DesignPhiladelphia festival returns this Thursday, Oct. 4, through Saturday, Oct. 13, and yes, design can have something to do with social impact.

This 14th annual fest boasts panels, exhibitions and workshops that convene design-minded Philadelphians to consider the city’s future as it relates to “thoughtful design, collaborative business practices, and community engagement.”

Not an interior architect? Not a problem. Here are a few DesignPhiladelphia events that integrate arts and culture, sustainability, social justice, accessibility, health, community development and more.

Beyond Sustainability (Oct. 4)

“As the environmental movement continues to thrive, it is no longer good enough to do less harm or use less resources from the environment. Now is the time for designers to work towards creating a net positive future.”

• Hosted by Humanscale and Kershner Office Furniture

Democratization in a Design Collective (Oct. 4)

“The Design Activist Institute is a Philadelphia-based, intersectional, feminist, autonomous, grassroots collective of designers working for radical, utopian resistance and building a better world. Throughout Summer 2018, the design collective collaboratively created local ‘guides for utopia’ based around a number of issues using consensus-building, systems design, design thinking, principles of social justice, and democratic organizing tactics.”

• Hosted by the Design Activist Institute

Designing Futures for Equitable Neighborhoods in Philadelphia (Oct. 5)

“In this workshop, we will collaboratively and collectively imagine multiple possible futures for a selected set of neighborhoods in Philadelphia. Then we will develop various spectra of possibilities and use the strategic design and scenario planning process to map a range of combinations that could plausibly arise in Philadelphia neighborhoods.”

• Hosted by Econsult Solutions Inc. 

Fast Forward >> Philly (Oct. 5)

“A lineup of presenters from various creative backgrounds will Fast Forward through 20 slides at 20 seconds each to answer one question: What’s next for Philly? from parks in a truck, to sustaining legacy businesses, to moving beyond the block clean-up in building up neighborhoods.”

• Hosted by Philadelphia Emerging Architects

Art Therapy Introductory Workshop (Oct. 9)

“This art therapy introduction is hands-on and participants will create while learning about the use of art in psychotherapy as a tool for physical and emotional release, personal development and growth, insight, trauma processing, skill-building and enhancing communication.”

• Hosted by Jefferson University

Health Design Lab Open House (Oct. 9)

“Imagine a space where Doctors and Designers alike can come together and solve some of the toughest challenges in healthcare in one of the most evocative spaces in Philadelphia. The Health Design Lab @JeffInnovation exists to bring people together, including patients, who in the past may never have interacted with the goal of accelerating change and translating technological innovation to real innovations at the bedside.”

• Hosted by Jefferson University

Party like it’s 2035: Celebrate the next phase of Philadelphia2035 (Oct. 9)

“Together we have created plans to address: Housing everyone can afford; Quality public transportation; Streets safe for walking, driving, and biking; Jobs and shops; Parks within a 10-minute walk; Healthy food options; Historic buildings that are saved and reused.”

• Hosted by Philadelphia2035

Housing, Design and Health Panel Discussion (Oct. 10)

“The availability of safe and affordable housing with access to transportation, parks, healthy food and other amenities can lead to better physical and mental health that will improve the overall quality of life for all Philadelphians. Learn what the City of Philadelphia and community organizations are doing to help bridge the gap between housing and health.”

• Hosted by AARP

AGRITECTURE: Blurring the Line Between Farm and City (Oct. 11)

“As the world population is set to approach 10 billion by 2050, humanity reckons with an agricultural infrastructure that is not only insufficient — but also wasteful, polluting, and prone to drought and famine. Agritecture explores the inevitable assimilation of two worlds through aspiration, investigation and execution: from forward-thinking greenhouses in Ohio to sky-scraper farms in the UK.”

• Hosted by Erdy McHenry Architecture