Designers, tell us: What tools do you swear by? How do you collaborate with teammates? What convinces you to adopt a new process? Google is compiling a state-of-the-industry report on how the design community gets work done, with a focus on the most valuable UX tools. We define “UX tools” as any product or system designers use to create, review, or test new work and prototypes. This could include Sketch, InVision, Framer, UserTesting.com, Material Design, or Dedoose, but we’re also interested in hearing about your collaboration and communication tools, like Slack or Google Docs. It’s anonymous, but the results will be shared with the broader design and product development community, and—we think—help improve the way we all work. The survey takes about 15 minutes and is open until October 14. Take the UX Tools survey.

This year, our annual design conference returns to New York City with SPAN Brooklyn. We’ll gather at 99 Scott—a rehabilitated warehouse-turned-arts space in Bushwick, Brooklyn—for a day-long event uniting design, technology, and art. We’re planning a full schedule of talks, demos, workshops, art installations, and lots more. Over the next few weeks we’ll be announcing our speaker lineup—stay tuned and follow #SPAN19 for the latest. In the meantime, you can explore our related articles, videos, and guides from past SPAN events. SPAN Brooklyn is invite-only, but there’s another way to get your SPAN fix: Enter our giveaway of SPAN Helsinki readers—Volume 4 is chock-full of interviews, art, and essays on everything from AI to waste-free design, and features contributions from Linda Bergroth, Dan Hill, Lidewij Edelkoort, and James Bridle. Simply fill out this form—the first 100 people will get a copy. Good luck!Visit design.google/span2019 and our FAQ for more information.

Today we’re announcing our open call for the 2019 Material Design Awards. If you’re a designer using Material Design to build a useful service, execute an ambitious vision, or simply spark delight in a product, we want to see (and celebrate!) what you’ve created.This year we’ll be accepting nominations in four categories: Theming (products that brilliantly exemplify Material Theming guidelines), Innovation (work that creatively expands on Material), Universality (think inclusive and accessible), and Experience (for superb interaction and navigation). We’re keeping an eye out for meaningful experiences across all categories, and platforms. To see the work we’ve honored in the past, look through our MDA archives from 2018, 2017, and 2016.Nominate someone (or yourself) by filling out this entry form by August 24, 2019. Material Design Award winners will be announced on Google Design this fall.