Insight
The latest industry news, interviews and trends.
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Interview
The Power of Art in Healthcare: A Conversation with Anne Carlyle
March 18, 2025
42 mins
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Interview
Collaborative Spaces: Supporting the Next Generation of Learners
We spoke with Nick Gillissie, founder and partner at Modus ID and designer of Global’s new product series, Collaborative Spaces. Nick provides his insight into how this furniture collection, which includes mobile team carts, work tables and accessories, meets the needs of today's learning environments.
November 21, 2024
5 mins
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Interview
What’s next for the office? A conversation with Susan Chang
The number of workers with hybrid work arrangements has tripled since 2022 in Canada1 and increased to 41% in the US2. We spoke with Susan Chang, Senior Vice President, Workplace Consulting at JLL about the impact of hybrid work on office design, and what’s next for the workplace.
September 25, 2024
4 mins
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Interview
Towards a Brighter Future: Innovations in Care Offer Dignity and Hope for Those With Dementia
With an estimated 750,000 Canadians and 6.7 million Americans suffering from Alzheimer’s and dementia, the need for innovative care strategies for those living with memory loss is critical.
August 1, 2024
4 mins
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Interview
Directions in Education: Supporting Lifelong Learning and Schools as Community Infrastructure
In 2023, an estimated 21 million students were enrolled in public universities and colleges across Canada¹ and the United States². With enrollment numbers rising, higher education institutes play a vital role in shaping the future of work and influencing the local communities in which they reside.
May 8, 2024
4 mins
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Interview
Designing for Healthcare: Q&A with Global’s Mara Messenger
Designing furniture for healthcare settings transcends considerations of aesthetics or commercial viability. To gain deeper insight into opportunities and the challenges of designing furniture for healthcare environments, we spoke with Mara Messenger, a Senior Industrial Designer at Global.
May 1, 2024
3 mins
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Project
Supporting the Next Generation of Sustainability Champions With Real-World Experience
Over the past decade, Global has partnered with Seneca College to collaborate with and mentor the next generation of sustainability leaders. Recently, Global welcomed students from the Project Management Environment (PME) course at Seneca College.
June 27, 2023
4 mins
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Trend
The Rise of Ambulatory Care and its Impact on Design
As medical advances make what were once complex procedures routine, we are seeing healthcare delivery methods shift away from the traditional hospital model of care.
April 27, 2023
5 mins
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Trend
Why the public library is becoming the most popular place to hang out and work
While many may think the library is a stuffy place filled with books and destined for obsolesce, public libraries have quietly been keeping pace with change.
January 12, 2023
3 mins
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Trend
Your office may be excluding the people you are trying to attract and retain: a look at Ambient Belonging and its impact on workplace design
An inclusive workplace values differences among individuals. It is a place where everyone feels welcome and accepted. A space where they can feel that they belong. As organizations and their employees place greater emphasis on EDIB (Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging), how a space is designed becomes even more crucial to supporting these values.
November 8, 2022
4 mins
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Spotlight
Valuing people over paperwork: attracting and retaining staff in long-term care and nursing homes
Staff in long-term care (LTC) and nursing homes provide care and support for millions of seniors every day, but there are not nearly enough of them. In fact, it is estimated that 90% of nursing homes in the U.S. are currently understaffed.
July 7, 2022
4 mins
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Trend
Great Expectations: Reimagining the Higher Education Experience Post-COVID
COVID-19 has shifted our expectations and expanded the conversation about what truly defines a valuable educational experience from a student’s perspective. While remote learning enabled students to continue with their education during the pandemic, it has proven to be no replacement for the campus experience that so many students covet.
May 10, 2022
3 mins
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Interview
How loneliness can be a greater danger than COVID-19 to our seniors over the long-term
COVID-19 has underscored how important social connection is to the well-being of seniors. From lockdowns to restrictions on visitors and activities, long-term care (LTC) residents have endured strict infection and prevention control protocols to limit outbreaks.
March 10, 2022
5 mins
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Interview
Designing for dementia and moving away from a one-size-fits-all approach
COVID-19 has highlighted many shortcomings within the long-term care (LTC) sector, including the lagging attention to the needs of dementia residents. With the number of seniors who are expected to live with cognitive decline set to increase dramatically, it’s time to rethink our approach to caring for these individuals.
March 3, 2022
5 mins
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Interview
The perils and promise of long-term care post COVID-19 from a staffing perspective
COVID-19 has proven to be a tragic wakeup call for better living and working conditions in many long-term care (LTC) homes.
February 24, 2022
4 mins
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Interview
The way forward from warehousing seniors to a more humane approach to senior care
COVID-19 has proven to be a watershed event in the way we approach the design of long-term care (LTC) facilities. The pandemic has brought into sharp focus how a chronic practice of ‘warehousing’ seniors within large institutions can negatively impact the safety and well-being of its residents.
February 17, 2022
5 mins
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Spotlight
Sustainability and Partnership: With a Little Help from our Friends
No manufacturer accomplishes complete environmental sustainability with just one initiative, and Global has several. Here’s the story of one of our earlier and most successful efforts.
January 5, 2022
3 mins
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Spotlight
Global Brings Human-Centred Thinking to Fast-Growing Healthcare Fields
Hospitals are changing. While dull, clinical spaces formulated according to a one-size-fits-all institutional checklist still come to mind when we think of healthcare spaces, a new model of care is emerging. Emphasizing the patient experience, designers are transforming acute, critical and senior living spaces to support wellbeing. For Global Furniture Group, it’s an evolution 35 years in the making.
May 3, 2021
4 mins
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Trend
Creating Better Learning Environments
From the front door to the classroom, how a learning space is designed can impact performance and influence how students feel when they're in school—as well as how they feel about their school. A study by McGill University has examined the direct connection between space and learning.
November 30, 2020
4 mins
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Trend
Global Provides Bedside Tables to COVID-19 Emergency Field Hospital in New Orleans
As the number of coronavirus cases in Louisiana continued their ascent on Saturday, crews rushed to put the finishing touches on a makeshift, 1,000-bed hospital inside the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, scheduled to open Monday to ease the strain on area hospitals.
April 9, 2020
3 mins
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Trend
Designing in Real-Time for an Ever-Changing Workspace
We know open-plan offices are here to stay, even as the way their space is allocated seems to keep shifting as the discipline of workspace planning matures.
January 10, 2020
3 mins
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Trend
The Psychology of Style: What Neuroscience Reveals about Education and Healthcare Design
Neuroscience can reveal much about the secret inner workings of the human brain—and now, it has set its sights on understanding how interior design affects our emotions and well being, even when we are not consciously aware of those effects.
October 24, 2019
3 mins
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Interview
We're Changing it Up. Meet River+
River+™ is the next generation of our highly popular lounge series. Now with industry-leading support for workplace, education and healthcare, River+ performs at three times the BIFMA standard for true 24/7 applications in demanding environments.
October 11, 2019
3 mins
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Trend
The Psychology of Style: What Neuroscience Reveals about Workplace Design
Whether intentional or not, the interiors we design are coded with messages. A cocktail lounge may serve the same basic function as a sports bar, but differences in their interior design signal the type of customer each space is meant to attract.
July 4, 2019
4 mins
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Trend
Changing It Up: What Not to Miss on the 10th Floor at NeoCon 2019
Change is the constant that each new generation brings to the table. As we embrace the innovations in workplace, education and healthcare environments, Global continues to design products that provide meaning and value to people.
May 28, 2019
2 mins
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Project
Mohawk College’s Joyce Centre Wins RAIC Award of Excellence
The emerging low-carbon economy has made a powerful impact on how buildings are designed, built and conducted in North America.
May 16, 2019
3 mins
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Spotlight
NeoCon 2019: 5 Spots to Hit Over Lunch Hour in Chicago
You may only be in Chicago for 24 hours during NeoCon, but it doesn't mean you can't explore the city! Use your lunch hour wisely, and you can still experience some of the best art, food and drinks Chicago has to offer.
May 6, 2019
3 mins
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Trend
Is Benching Here to Stay?
With their love for technology, collaboration, and connections, Millennials have changed the workplace. From the moment this generation entered the workforce, companies made the transition from cubicles to benching to accommodate their need of working closely with each other.
March 14, 2019
4 mins
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Project
Tandem Law: A Progressive Law Environment
The traditional law environment is often a collection of cubicles and private offices that emphasize individuality, privacy and status.
December 13, 2018
3 mins
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Project
This Award-Winning Design Transforms the Way You See Public Health
It is hard to imagine that the services currently provided at the award-winning North Bay Parry Sound District Health Unit were once housed in three cramped, leased locations.
November 1, 2018
3 mins
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Trend
"I'm not going to the home!" The Next Challenge for Architects and Designers
As the proclaimed "Me" generation, baby boomers have spurred the development of society, technology, architecture and design throughout every stage of their lives.
September 6, 2018
3 mins
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Trend
Why Co-working Spaces for Women are Creating Controversy
As the corporate world deals with issues of gender-pay disparities, sexual harassment and too few women in leadership roles, female-focused workspaces are having a moment.
July 31, 2018
6 mins
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Trend
Spaces Within Spaces: A Refuge in the Open Plan Office
The open plan office: love it, or hate it? If you dread the noise levels, lack of privacy, and having to be “on” all the time, there is good news. The open plan office design is changing.
July 12, 2018
4 mins
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Trend
Why the Millennial Workplace Won’t Work for Generation Z
Foosball tables, game rooms and beer fridges may seem like obvious hallmarks of modern offices that cater to Millennials. But what about Generation Z?
June 14, 2018
4 mins
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Spotlight
How is Online Learning Shaping the College Campus?
With the Internet’s rapid growth as a network for social, business, and personal needs, adapting post-secondary education courses to the online platform was inevitable. Online learning appeals because it offers leniency with scheduling—students are able to complete coursework around their personal responsibilities and manage their priorities accordingly.
May 31, 2018
3 mins
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Interview
Are Sit-Stand Tables the Answer? An Interview with Lucy Hart
The most important asset at a company is not something you can put your hands on. It is not the equipment or the data or even the intellectual property, but the people—the human capital—what can either make or break a business.
May 10, 2018
4 mins
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Trend
The Spaces In Between: Where the Next Big Ideas Emerge
Everyday, you take dozens of short journeys. Whether walking from your office to the meeting room, or from the classroom to the library, you take a designated path: the hallway.
May 1, 2018
4 mins
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Interview
Safer Products That Stay Out of the Landfill Longer: An Interview with Felipe Arias
Felipe Arias is an expert at destroying furniture. As Manager at the Global Test Facility, he is in charge of testing the limits of every product that comes his way. Within a company that designs, markets and distributes furniture, he has the unusual task of trying to destroy products.
April 19, 2018
3 mins
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Inspiration
5 Creative School Interiors that Inspire Active Young Learners
From outdoor classrooms to indoor slides, today's kindergartens and primary schools are innovative spaces. While the spotlight shines on post-secondary interior design, the spaces of early childhood education have been quietly evolving.
April 5, 2018
3 mins
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Project
The Secret to McMaster University's Student Recruitment Success
Faced with the struggle of attracting new students, post-secondary institutions have to be ahead of the curve to stay competitive. Today, students often favor interactive, technology-based learning over traditional lectures, and many institutions are only just catching up.
March 22, 2018
3 mins
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Trend
Healthcare Furniture: The Silent Hero in Hospitals
In the past, aesthetic and cost were the main influence in the furnishing of hospital lounge areas and inpatient rooms. However, when furnishing the hospitals of today, focus has shifted from what pleases the eye, to what helps in the battle against health-care associated infections.
February 6, 2018
3 mins
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Trend
6 Reasons Why Dogs in the Office are Great for Business
More than 8 percent of American companies, ranging from tech and software to hotels and beauty parlours, allow dogs in their workplace1. A trend that started with big companies like Google is now permeating into other sectors and businesses.
February 6, 2018
5 mins
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Project
Johnson Chou Transforms Spaces into Stories
Every space has a story to tell. For designer Johnson Chou, spaces tell the stories of the people who occupy them.
February 6, 2018
4 mins
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Spotlight
The Student Mental Health Crisis Calls for Better Campus Design
The college experience promises new friends, campus living and endless parties. But what about the loneliness, stress and struggles?
February 6, 2018
5 mins
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Interview
Designing for Healthcare: An Interview with Amy Keeler
From a designer's point of view, designing furniture for healthcare is not exclusively focused on fashion or sales. The healthcare market requires special consideration in functionality—more so than any other sector.
February 6, 2018
3 mins
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Project
Student Enrollment Soars After $5M Renovation at The York School
In order to create an environment that would help realize the potential of its students, The York School embarked on a significant renovation of its Middle and Senior School campus.
February 6, 2018
2 mins
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Trend
Beanbags in the Office: Are They Here to Stay?
When the topic of beanbag chairs arises, guaranteed, the office is not the first image that comes to mind. Beanbag chairs are most commonly associated with residential homes and the rooms of youth, but not necessarily thought of as furniture pieces.
February 6, 2018
3 mins
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