Call for presentations

Design in the Hills 2024 deadline: Feb. 14, 2025

AIA SD Convention deadline: Feb. 14, 2025

Welcome! AIA South Dakota values your knowledge and insight, and we welcome your submission to provide continuing education and promote learning across the organization.

AIA South Dakota is a professional membership organization of architects, design professionals who anticipate becoming licensed in the future, and partners with expertise in the built environment who seek opportunities to learn, share and advance the important idea that design matters in every South Dakota community. AIA South Dakota is a 501(c)6 non-profit organization, a component of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), and one of 217 Accredited AIA components across the globe.

AIA SD Signature Events: 

Design in the Hills is an interdisciplinary gathering of design professionals who work with individual communities to celebrate and elevate the standard of design in the Black Hills. Each year we focus on projects and places of interest in communities of the Black Hills by rotating the event between the various cities in the Black Hills region. This conference is unique in the design world; while there are sponsors and continuing education credits, very little of it is provided in a traditional classroom setting. The conference is interactive and mobile with a full day of tours and presentations.

AIA South Dakota Annual Convention and Expo is the largest architecture and design event in the state. The convention is valued its commitment to hosting world-class speakers, relevant panels and presentations and facilitating strong connections between architects and suppliers to the built environment. In addition to architects, attendees often include engineers, landscape architects, interior designers and others who contribute to the built environment. Tours are often present as part of the event as are more traditional presentations and panels. Creative submissions welcome.

Please feel free to submit a proposal for consideration for Design in the Hills or the AIA SD Annual Convention. If your proposal could wortk for either event, please specify that information.

Your submission:

Submissions related to walking tours, building tours, presentations, hands-on workshops, trainings, charette subjects, etc. are all welcome. Share your innovative project or product, detail a unique experience or host a collaborative session. Presenters will typically be allotted 60 minutes per session, inclusive of Q&A. If you need an extended session, please communicate your preferred timeframe and  communicate a rationale explaining why you need the additional time and how conference attendees will benefit.

Throughout the evaluation process, AIA SD Committees will use the following criteria in their review:

• Timeliness, innovation, and creativity of topic or project
• Practical application
• Specificity and quality of content
• Relevance to the South Dakota design community
• Interaction/audience participation opportunity
• Level of commercial bias
• Educational nature of program and likelihood of satisfying continuing education requirements

To Submit:

• Prepare a brief abstract describing your proposed presentation
• Provide a biography of your background and experience
• Feel free to submit any additional renderings, photographs or support materials you desire
• If your idea doesn't precisely fit our typical presentation formats and you still believe would be a good session, propose it anyway. AIA SD event attendees want to learn about interesting projects and innovations pertaining to architecture and design
• Please detail if you are open to presenting at Design in the Hills, AIA South Dakota’s Annual Convention or either event

AIA SD Response:

AIA SD committee members will begin contacting individual submitters to communicate one of three actions:

• Proposal accepted
• Proposal remains under evaluation for a future event (may include request for additional information)
• Proposal was not selected

General Submission Guidelines:

Submissions must be submitted as a pdf document and delivered via email to angela (at) aiasouthdakota.org.

• Multiple submissions welcome
• Include contact information (phone, email and physical address) with each submission IN THE PDF document