The 8th edition of UX Pakistan 2025 was recently hosted by the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), marking the country's largest and longest-running design conference. The event brought together designers, technologists, educators, and thought leaders from Pakistan and beyond, under the theme 'Design for Social Impact'. This highlighted the strategic role of design in societal transformation, going beyond aesthetics.

This year's conference focused on challenging traditional design interpretations and emphasized the strategic application of design to address Pakistan's critical issues, such as inclusive education, public health, climate resilience, and urban development.

Design in Pakistan has evolved to include systems thinking, strategic planning, and social equity considerations. The UX Pakistan conference aims to position design as a key driver of human-centred innovation in both the public and private sectors.

Initially a student-led movement at LUMS, UX Pakistan has grown into a national platform for design discussions and initiatives. The conference not only featured keynote speeches and panel talks but also launched 'Design for Pakistan', an initiative focused on integrating design thinking into academia, government, and industry.

Design for Pakistan seeks to go beyond advocacy by establishing a practical framework for incorporating design into national development. It will involve updating academic programs, introducing design fellowships, forming partnerships across sectors, and assisting governments in creating empathetic and contextually relevant public services.

With Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) being a top priority in Pakistan, the event showcased how design can be used as a tool to develop localized, intelligent, and scalable solutions to complex challenges.

As Pakistan faces various social, economic, and environmental hurdles, UX Pakistan 2025 emphasized the importance of nurturing a national design culture that is impactful and unique to local contexts.

The message from LUMS is clear: Pakistan should not aim to follow global design trends but should instead carve its path forward, starting now.