The Forum

Globally sought-after interior architect and designer Tristan Auer joins the line-up at The Forum this year to share his expert view on reimagining icons, balancing heritage with modern living, and the enduring value of craft.
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Tristan Auer

In conversation with Sara Hamdan, T. Magazine

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AI can generate a vision in seconds, but buildings still take years to deliver. This conversation explores how technology is changing creativity, communication and decision-making in architecture, and what must remain deeply human in designing the future.

Speakers: Yahya Kaddoura (Atkins Realis), Alina Valcarce(Valcarce Architects), Hamza Farooq (AECOM)

Moderator: Maya Cochrane (RIBA)

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Interior design icon Katharine Pooley takes the stage at The Forum, in an ‘in conversation with’ style dialogue. On the agenda: how the way we live, work and unwind is reshaping the modern home, and what makes a space unmistakably personal.

Katharine Pooley

In conversation with Khemena Ahmed, The Kurator

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In high-end design, materials are more than finishes; they signal value. From weighing craftsmanship against mass production to balancing beauty, durability and sustainability, this panel unpacks the material trends shaping tomorrow’s luxury developments.

Speakers: Ralf Steinhauer (RSP), Pooja Shah Mulani (LW Design), Mohammad Adib (Dewan Architects), Ellen Søhoel (XBD Collective)

Moderator: Agata Kurzela (Agata Kurzela Studio)

From intelligent homes to the quiet premium, this panel uncovers what “Luxury Living” means next. The future of luxury may be the thing we don’t notice: technology that disappears, architecture that adapts, neighbourhoods designed around nature. So what will living well look like in the places we have yet to build?

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Speakers: Laura Hammett, Karine Obegi (Obegi Home), Jonathan Ashmore (ANArchitect), Mauricio Clavero Kozlowski (Mauricio Clavero)

Moderator: Paolo Bleve, IFDM

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What makes a city feel like home? As Dubai grows at speed, how do we design for belonging? Seated on Al Dakkah, the traditional Emirati bench where home meets neighbourhood, this panel explores how thoughtful design at street level shapes the way we live together and asks what has to be true at the scale of an object before anything works at the scale of a city. 

Speakers: Omar al Gurg (MODU Method),  Saad Boujane (Gensler), Mohammed Orfali (Orfali Bros)

Moderator: Nadia Verjee (Fitted, An Expo City Dubai Subsidiary)

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Designing Retail as Hospitality: The best boutiques no longer just sell; they host. A line-up of specialists in luxury retail, spatial design and hospitality, this panel uncovers how retail is borrowing from hospitality to create spaces where people want to spend time.

Speakers:  Elisa Bruno (Level Shoes), Frederick Trzcinski (Lutron), Alia Centofanti (Kristina Zanic)

Moderator:  Allegra Salvadori Loni, Marie Claire Maison

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As global cities start to look the same, what makes one place feel unlike any other? With infrastructure and talent now easily imported, where does the real edge lie? Specialists discuss drawing on regional context, materials and culture to shape distinctive cities that meet global standards, without resorting to surface-level references or someone else’s template.

Speakers: Tom Crute (DHRE), Fatma Al Khayat (ARKAT), Samer Charara (Woods Bagot)

Moderator: Inzamam Rashid, Monocle

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Before a city is built, it is written. This panel explores how the invisible codes of planning, accessibility, biodiversity and commerce shape the way we experience our cities, from dynamic lighting and native landscapes to drone transport.

Speakers: Carlos Barea Sandoval (IRTH Group), YaLun Li (Dunes Workshop, AUD), Adela Askandar (Studio Bikin Architects), Yann Follain (WY-TO).

Moderator:  Lisa Teo (AIA ME Board)

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What does 'Made in Italy' mean to a market that knows exactly what it wants? Italian and regional design experts discuss how Italian manufacturing adapts to Gulf projects, from bespoke residences to hospitality, without losing what makes it distinctive.

Speakers: Valerio Soldani (Italian Trade Agency), Marco Mangili (MMA), Luca Mazza (HMA Living), Jaime Terrades (H&H)

Moderator: Camille Dubuis-Welsch, Commercial Interior Design

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Should buildings be made to last, or designed to be taken apart? As pressure mounts to cut waste and carbon, architects, designers and manufacturers weigh longevity against circular strategies of disassembly, reuse and material recovery.

Speakers: Vladimir Jovanovic (AECOM), Lia Ronez (Woods Bagot), Hala Nahas (Dabbagh Architects)

Moderator: Philip Dudley (AtkinsRéalis)

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Every memorable showcase starts with an idea. Is the concept the most important part of a project, or the most fragile? This panel explores how creative ideas require protection from brief to build, and what it takes to carry a vision from first sketch to finished work.

Speakers: Carlo Magistretti (Sobha Furniture), Seema Al Mansouri (Eva Interiors), Milica Didic (Ele Interior), Rim Guirari (Mustard & Linen)

Moderator: Aneesha Rai

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What makes Dubai instantly recognisable? From record-breaking skyscrapers, malls and destination hotels to food trends and entrepreneurship at its best, this panel explores how creative firms shaped the city’s blueprint and a design identity now exported worldwide, and what comes next for the city of the future.

Speakers:  Emily Mottolese (SOM), Sameer Grover (Rove Hotels), Todd Pilgreen (Gensler), Christian Vasquez (National Engineering Bureau)

Moderator: Li Ren, AIA ME Board and 2025 President

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How do you turn heritage into something people want to live with today? From objects to architecture, this panel explores how designers draw on tradition without being bound by it, creating work that belongs as much to the present as the past.

Speakers:  Achraf Mzily (BONE Studio), Sumaya Dabbagh (Dabbagh Architects), Alzaina Lootah (Architect & Designer, UAE Designer Exhibition 2026), Marco Maximus (KEANE)

The region’s creative community is finding new expressions. Designers and makers working locally share how experimenting with local materials, resources, and influences is producing some of the most original and innovative work to emerge from the UAE.

Speakers:  Xeina Malki (Slo Ceramics) , Helen Voce (Tanween by Tashkeel), Salma Aboubida (OKSAN Group), Ahmed Bayashout (Studio A)

Moderator: Yashna Balwanth, editor of Identity

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Who will lead the future of the built environment? This panel explores how women are shaping leadership, practice and design culture in the region, and whether the industry needs not just greater representation, but new ways of leading.

Speakers: Loukia Voultsaki, (AECOM), Maryam Al-Irhayim (AECOM), Maya Cochrane (RIBA Gulf Chapter Chair)

Moderator: Matthew Utley (NOWMA Studio)

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