Past Event

London, UK

Towards the end of June 2026, WOD hosted a special evening at Actiu’s London showroom to explore The New Habitat 27/28, APE Grupo’s annual trends report examining the social, cultural and technological shifts reshaping how we live, work and connect with the spaces around us.

The evening opened with a presentation by Pepa Casado D’Amato, Director of Futurea. Her insights provided the foundation for a thought-provoking panel discussion about the future of design and the role our environments play in creating a sense of belonging.

During the conversation, we asked the audience a simple question: “Where do you feel like you truly belong?”

The responses were deeply personal: a grandmother’s kitchen, a favourite beach, a place beside the water or somewhere surrounded by nature. Interestingly, nobody mentioned a favourite chair, desk or office. Instead, each response described an emotion—a feeling of peace, freedom, community, stillness or playfulness. It was a powerful reminder that belonging is emotional long before it is physical.

What does this mean for designers? The discussion challenged us to look beyond finishes, furniture and aesthetics. Designing for belonging means considering the entire human experience: creating meaningful journeys, offering genuine choice, allowing moments of disconnection and shaping environments in which people can feel comfortable, connected and themselves.

For designers, architects and manufacturers, creating spaces that support human emotion and connection may be one of our most important challenges—and opportunities. Our thanks go to APE Grupo, Futurea and Actiu for their continued partnership, and to our panellists: Tammy Hart, (Gensler), Jeni Durksen (M Moser Associates), Katie Bowes (Tsunami Axis and The Torrington Group) and Harsha Kotak (Sustainable Design Collective and WOD).

We would also like to thank everyone who contributed to such a thoughtful conversation, including Bruno Ciurana, Pepa Casado D’Amato, Urszula Bytnar, Aqilah Amran, Veronica Kingsley, Sergio Pallarés, Tanya Roberts and Thomas Sault.