1. Encourage and assist students, new designers and practising designers in the development of their design quality and professional practice.

2. Provide educators with feedback on industry expectations of graduates.

3. Assist buyers and users of design in understanding the value of good design and distinguishing between levels of design quality and professional practice.

4. Improve the partnerships between experienced designers and suppliers to the communication process.

5. Educate the general public on good design, its value and what is required to become a professional designer.

Our current priority is the education of clients and the government, through publications, expanded promotion of our many existing events, and direct liaison. For example, we liaise with CREATE Australia, an Industry Training Advisory Board (ITAB) to ensure that graphic designer training needs are properly understood and accounted for in educational research and development programs.

We currently engage in many activities in order to achieve these strategic objectives:

1. Biennial National Awards - these Awards provide a benchmark of design quality to the profession, clients, government and the general public. The Awards are Australia's largest graphic design award program. The Awards are accompanied by the AGDA Paperpoint Hall of Fame, which recognises outstanding contributors to the Australian graphic design community.

2. The book that is produced with each Awards event serves as a showcase of the Australian work and can be ordered from our National Secretariat.

3. Biennial AGDA Conference at Coolum, QLD - the conference provides an opportunity for designers to meet and learn from the local and international speakers and each other. The event has also proved to be a great national design community-building exercise. In 1997 the conference will be expanded to include a trade show.

4. Designer presentations - these `show and tells' are characterised by detailed and frank discussions of work, and lively Q&A sessions. They are either organised by State Councils (see your local State calendar of events) or are national speaker tours organised by our sponsors and co-marketed by us, with discounts for AGDA members.

5. Australian speakers have included: Gordon Andrews, Michael Bryce, Ken Cato, Mimmo Cozzolino, Phil Ellet, Annette Harcus, Andrew Hoyne, Ian Kidd and Max Robinson.

6. International speakers have included: Charles S Anderson, Ned Culic, Joe Duffy, Brad Holland, David Hillman, Kit Hinrichs, Alexander Isley, Brian Webb and Wolfgang Weingart.

7. Inter-disciplinary design presentations - these `show and tells' focus on expanding our awareness of other design disciplines such as interior and industrial design. Speakers such as Roger Simpson of Design Synergy are passionate exponents of a multi-disciplinary design approach. Our relationships with organisations such as the Design Institute of Australia allows us to secure discounts for AGDA members to their events.

8. Professional Practice Seminars - as a designer once remarked, "I'm a designer, my partner is a designer, and unfortunately we are also in business." AGDA provides opportunities for its members to learn about and deal with the issues of being in business. Popular topics include: Copyright, Free Pitching, Marketing a Design Practice and Business Management for Design Studios. These events are organised by State Councils (see your local State calendar of events).

9. Curriculum Advisory Boards - AGDA provides advice to local educators on curriculum content, either by providing members to sit on the institution's external advisory group (eg. NSW, Vic) or by forming an independent advisory group (eg. WA)

1. AGDA Practice Notes - these publications will be provided free to members for use in their own studios and as aids to educate clients on the value of good design.

2. AGDA Educational Survey - this annual survey will provide a reference database of AGDA members perceptions of the employability of graduates from institutions across Australia. It will be valuable to employers, students, educators and government.

3. Client Seminars - these presentations will be targeted at the business community with the aim of increasing client understanding of the value of good design and how to better manage their use of designers.

4. Direct lobbying of government departments and business associations in order to improve the business environment for graphic designers

5. A national publicity program to increase the public profile of Australian graphic design

6. Beyond working for and within the graphic design community, AGDA actively manages a number of relationships with other design bodies. AGDA is the authorised Australian representative association of ICOGRADA (the international association of graphic design associations and the offical advisory group on graphic design to the United Nations).

7. We maintain regular dialogue with other groups within Australia, such as the Design Institute of Australia (DIA), Society of Interior Designers of Australia (SIDA), the Australian Textile Design Association (ATDA), the Australian Commercial and Magazine Photographers (ACMP) and the Printing Industries Association (PIA).