We believe that transforming the human experience is the highest calling of our work, and the clearest response to the challenges our clients are dealing with. We have made this the theme of Gensler’s 2017 Design Forecast, considering experience at three scales: the human, the urban, and the everyday. The publication is centered on four major themes that encapsulate the ideas we’re focused on with our clients: The Experience-Driven Life, Livable Cities, Everyday Impact, and Responsive Design. Through the lens of these themes, we examine how design will shape the human experience in the next year and beyond.

This year, we took a multi-disciplinary, cross-sector approach to Design Forecast, recasting the publication in a magazine-like format to consider design’s impact on experience at different scales, from human to urban. This year’s Forecast was informed by Gensler’s Design Forecast LIVE event, in which we discussed the large trends we’re seeing with our clients, and what that means for them—both in disruption and opportunity. The Forecast uses our current project work to illustrate how the how our work is experienced at different scales. Each of the sections is framed by a theme and related trends, followed by feature articles with our project work, and ending with research attached to it. The Forecast is followed by the firm’s Annual Report.

Once again, the Design Forecast was issued in three languages—Chinese, English, and Spanish. Each version has an online counterpart, designed to be accessible on any smart device. Printed in Canada and China, the total run was 35,000 copies. The publication was promoted via Gensler’s website, social media channels, and an email blast to more than 64,000 clients. Its publication occasions events at the office level to review and discuss findings with clients. It is accompanied by a publicity campaign and an added content series pushed out through the firm’s online channels.