I just spent 15 minutes this morning reviewing the AIGA Standards of Professional Practice with two questions in mind:

• Are these standards still relevant in this day and age?
• Am I comfortable asking our members to abide by them?

This recap of AIGA Portland's SHIFT 4 event was written by Jane Pellicciotto, sustainability committee member.

Another well-attended SHIFT confirmed that Portlanders are still hungry for engaging presentations on sustainable design thinking—or maybe it was the free beer. Either way, two key themes emerged from the evening. One was collaboration—joining forces to find solutions to today’s problems, together. A twist on the popular saying is called for: “Many hands make green work.” Another theme was the need to approach projects and solutions from a deeper, more meaningful perspective—highlighting the notion that if we’re to be agents of change then we need to design from the heart, if you will.

There have been some recent comments on Twitter about the Portland Chapter of AIGA’s RFP for a Pro-bono website. Most of these comments center around the AIGA Position on Spec Work (http://www.aiga.org/content.cfm/position-spec-work).

As the local Sponsorship Chair, I would like to address the concerns I have seen, with the caveat that this is my opinion and doesn’t represent a collective view from the organization, local or national.

As the new incoming President of AIGA President for 2010, I have a questions all the Portland designers out there: What would you like to see AIGA Portland do?

From our round table a few months ago we heard people requesting more crafts and government involvement. We heard that we're doing well with sustainability (SHIFT) and design inspiration (Designspeaks). That said, turn out at the round table was small - so weigh in and post a comment below and let us know what you would like to see us do.