Desmond LaubscherCEO Greenside Design Center, College of design

Des Laubscher is a Past President of the International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers. He served the IFI from 1995 as a board member, 1997 as President Elect and 1999 to 2001 as President.

He is a Fellow of Design for the World, a multi disciplinary organisation concerned with humanitarian aspects of design based in Barcelona, Spain.

He was elected President of the newly founded South African Institute for the Interior Design Professions (IID), in 2007. Prior to this he was President of Design South Africa, a multi disciplinary professional design organization formed in 1952.

In 2001 he was appointed a Visiting Professor of Design at Nottingham Trent University because of his achievements in promoting socially responsible design on an international design level. His appointment was vetted by designers in Sweden, Denmark, Australia, Korea and Ireland.

Des has presented papers on many design issues in many countries around the world, such as Korea, Japan, Australia, Bali, China, Spain, Denmark, England, Brazil, Mexico and the USA, to mention a few. He has also been a juror for many design competitions locally and internationally. He has chaired and been a representative on many international juries for design.

He is a founder of Greenside Design Center, a multi disciplinary design school in South Africa which has built a much respected worldwide profile in design circles.

Des has worked as an advisor to the Department of Art and Culture in South Africa. He is also on the Advisory Board of the International Federation of Interior Architects/Designers, and is currently the African and Middle East liaison for the Federation.