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Master’s student puts ethical design at the heart of her studies
03/12/2021
A University of Wolverhampton student has put ethical design at the heart of her studies and has received national recognition for her work in creating healthy and humane interior spaces.
Sadie MillerMaggs, a Master’s degree student in Interior Design at the University’s School of Art, recently contributed to the first Vegan Interior Design Week - a five-day online conference held in November 2021.
Vegan Interior Design Week is The World’s Leading Ethical Interior Design Movement presented by Vegan Interior Design. Over the course of 5 days, 40+ speakers from the US, Canada, South Africa, Australia, the UK, Germany, Austria and Greece shared their knowledge and experience.
Vegan Interior Design Week celebrates the work of a diverse collective of creatives changing the industry, from next-gen material developers to conscious furniture suppliers; from ethically inclined interior designers and design professionals to sustainable property developers and investors - including the University of Wolverhampton student.
Sadie MillerMaggs 33, from Gloucester, graduated with a first class honours degree in Interior Design in 2020 and has sought to expand her material knowledge in ethical design decision-making.
Sadie said: “As a devoted vegan, my goal is for designers and clients to understand, explore and consider the use of vegan alternatives in the residential and commercial sector and it’s my ambition to pursue a career in the industry, encouraging, inspiring, and developing a knowledge base for designers and clients to understand.
“Soon into studying my Master’s degree, I began reaching out to the vegan community and other vegan interior designers, which led to some really insightful views and information on the vegan design industry and created the opportunity for me to contribute to the first Vegan Interior Design Event.
“At the conference I shared my story of my vegan journey and many of the influences along the way, with the aim to motivate other students who wish to also align their vegan ethics with their studies. I also used this presentation to share some of my favourite resources which included organisations such as Vegan Business Tribe, Material Innovation Initiative, and databases like Origin.
“Sharing my story was an honour, I felt like it was a way of giving back to the vegan community after all the support I had received. Studying such a new concept has its challenges but I am motivated by both the positive feedback I receive and the idea of contributing to a change in the interior design industry.
“The University of Wolverhampton really has opened so many opportunities for me, alongside my contextual studies and dedicated time to researching healthy and humane materials, I have also been encouraged to create my own biomaterials and investigate conceptual ways to successfully share my research and knowledge.
“I have also had the opportunity to present vegan design concepts to live clients and seek a mentor who has a registered vegan interior design practice, both of which have been invaluable. There really has been no limitations to how far my studies can go. Before my Master’s I was unsure of my career path, now I cannot contain my excitement for all of the possible and relevant options now available. I have already registered my business Vegan Material House which will act as resource/material database for those exploring healthy and humane materials and products, which hopefully will lead to the first physical vegan material library.”
The Vegan Interior design conference is hosted by vegan interior designer, author, and educator Aline Durr and was created to bring together a community of interior designers, suppliers, specifiers, manufacturers, retailers, and customers, by providing a platform to be inspired by ethical design excellence, see the latest product and material trends and hear thought-leading discussions from creative elites.
Anyone looking to study at the University of Wolverhampton should register for one of our forthcoming Open Days.
ENDS
For more information please contact the Corporate Communications Team.
