Based on the findings of the research, DIAC is proposing the following action steps to address opportunities and issues. (Visit the downloads section of this site to read the full report).

1. Establish a Design for Commercialization Program
Ontario companies need direct experience of the benefits of working closely with designers at every stage in the innovation process. The best way to do this is to establish new infrastructure for commercializing the products of innovation that will place designers in a starring role.

2. Build a Unified Brand for Design
The Ontario design community is an extraordinary creative force. But the design sector has an image problem. It isn’t that designers have a negative image, but rather that they don’t have an image at all – at least not a compelling one.

3. Form a Design Educators Network
In this research, DIAC has presented the first holistic view of design education in Ontario. To continue this higher level thinking about the profession of design, DIAC recommends that Ontario establish a Design Educators Network. In the network, educators from all the design disciplines could work together to promote more graduate degrees, to develop cross-disciplinary initiatives in design education and in design research. The network could also publish a guide to design education in Ontario and market the benefits of design as a professional career to high school students.

4. Establish a Model Design Policy
To reflect its commitment to the design sector and to make better use of local design resources, the Ontario government and the greater Toronto region should establish a design policy. There is an opportunity for Toronto and the rest of Ontario to take the lead in establishing design guidelines that could become a model for a National Design Policy for Canada.