Education Desk:
A seminar was held at BRAC University on the occasion of “Italian Design Day 2026”. Renowned Italian architect and designer Fabio Novembri spoke at the seminar. The seminar was held on Tuesday, March 31, 2026. The Italian Ambassador to Bangladesh, Antonio Alessandro, was present at the event.
The seminar was jointly organized by the Department of Architecture, School of Architecture and Design, BRAC University, and the Embassy of Italy in Bangladesh. It was held as part of the flagship event of the Department of Architecture, ‘Angon Lecture Series’. This year’s event was the 155th installment of the Angon Series.
Italian Design Day is an international cultural and diplomatic initiative of the Italian government. Its aim is to showcase Italian design, creativity, and innovation worldwide. Every year, the Italian government sends renowned designers, architects and creatives from the country to different countries. They go there to showcase the experience and work of Italian design and help create new collaboration opportunities. The theme of this year’s Italian Design Day is “Re-Design: Regenerating Spaces, Objects, Ideas and Relationships”.
Fabio Novembri is known worldwide for his exceptional design thinking. He has come to Bangladesh as this year’s Ambassador of Italian Design. Fabio founded Novembri Studio in 1994. He has worked for international brands such as Kartel, Stuart Weitzman, Capellini and Droid.
Fabio said that design is not just a job, it hides feelings, stories and human identities. He said that students should find their own design thinking. He advises them not to get discouraged at any stage of their lives. He emphasizes the importance of following their inspiration or ideals.
He presented his works to the students through a presentation. He explained how he got the design inspiration behind them. He told the students that we all have some unique qualities. We should find them and do the things we enjoy doing. The job of our educational institutions is also to bring out those unique qualities in the students.
At the end of the keynote speech, he answered various questions from teachers, students and guests. In response to a question, he said that we should find the answers ourselves instead of expecting all the answers from artificial intelligence. He also said that artificial intelligence can be helpful, but it is never a substitute for creativity, because every person is unique.
The Italian Ambassador to Bangladesh, Antonio Alessandro, spoke at the event. He said that through the Italian Design Day initiative, we give importance to design and architecture and through this, we are trying to solve the problems of our environment, transportation system and cities.
BRAC University Treasurer Ariful Islam, Registrar Dr. David Dowland, Chair of the Department of Architecture, Professor Zainab Farooqui Ali, Director of the Office of Communications, Khairul Bashar, teachers and students from various departments and officials of the Italian Embassy. The seminar was moderated by Professor Fuad Hasan Mallick, Dean of the School of Architecture and Design.
Earlier, Antonio Alessandro and Fabio Nobbi toured the eco-friendly campus of BRAC University. They called the architectural design of BRAC University groundbreaking. They met with Professor Syed Farhat Anwar, Vice-Chancellor of BRAC University. Professor Farhat presented the goals and objectives of BRAC University and various activities to them. He said, BRAC University’s goal is to become one of the leading universities in the Global South. We are working towards that goal.
