Taking place in the RDS tonight, November 16, the 2023 Irish Design Awards are set to celebrate the homegrown designers leaving a lasting impact on both the industry and the world.

Judged by a vast and international panel of industry experts, IDI CEO Charlotte Barker told RTÉ Lifestyle that the standards of the awards ensure that Irish design is held to an international standard.

"It not only gives designers an opportunity to celebrate their work, but it gives them a chance to spotlight that work on a global platform.

"We take great pride in pulling together an international panel of judges - international and Irish - so that we get a really nice blend of business leaders and designers who are leading in their field."

The awards showcase the breadth of talent that Irish design has to offer across a number of fields.

The 45 judges will be split up across the following categories: Fashion, Textiles & Jewellery Design, Product Design, Experience Design, Communication Design, Digital Design, Creative Practice & Collaboration, Structure & Spaces, Design Practice, and Special Awards.

This year, Barker says that the IDI have a particular interest in strategic design, an emerging discipline that looks at how designers think and approach creativity: "It's actually very beneficial to society and to business as well."

With this in mind, this year will see new scoring criteria, with every award in every category having a benchmark of sustainability. This special criteria recognises that to achieve excellence, design must be sustainable in how it is devised and delivered.

"It's absolutely crucial that sustainability that becomes more of a priority in every business, and I think designers are really well placed to have an impact on their business and that of their clients," she insists.

Reflecting on the Irish fashion scene, Barker says that the melding of old and new is something to behold:

"I think there's a huge amount of pride in Irish heritage, but also bringing that through into modernity, and looking at how we can really contemporise some of the traditional design practices," she says.

"They're just cool," she adds, "they're what people want, but they're also celebratory of Irish heritage and I think that's exactly where the zeitgeist is at. We're of a time of supporting and celebrating Irish-ness."

Looking ahead, the CEO says that the thing she's most looking forward to seeing unfold within the industry is connection and collaboration.

"There is this wonderful openness to collaboration and people working together, to lift each other up and to celebrate each other's talents. I think that's crucial to making a mark on an international stage. We're starting to build a narrative around Irish design that can travel.

"We have so many fantastic designers and we have a really unique positioning because Ireland has its own story to tell. By collaborating and connecting, it can give real strength to designers looking to grown their business.

"We should all, as individuals and consumers, be celebrating the true talent that we have on the island."