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Design Like a Pro: A One-Day Canva Workshop in Melbourne

Design Like a Pro: A One-Day Canva Workshop in Melbourne

Thu, Aug 27, 2:00 PM
From Mangates Global Professional Learning Network

**Overview** Master Canva to create professional, on-brand social media designs with hands-on practice in templates, branding, media, and content planning. **Program Details** **Duration**: 1 Full Day (8 Hours) **Delivery Mode**: Classroom (In-Person) **Language**: English **Credits**: 8 PDUs / Training Hours **Certification**: Course Completion Certificate **Refreshments**: Lunch, Snacks, and beverages will be provided during the session **Every Confident Designer Has a Day One. This Could Be Yours.** For general enquiries or booking your slot, contact us at: [info@mangates.com](info@mangates.com) +61 (0) 2 80155605 **Course Overview:** **The Design Gap No One Talks About** Their feed looked fine. Not bad, just forgettable. Every post used the same template, the same stock photo style, the same font picked at random months ago. Nothing looked broken, it just never quite looked like theirs. That's the gap most people hit long before they ever open a design tool properly. Not a lack of creativity, just a lack of the right skills to translate an idea into something that actually looks professional. **The Moment Design Stops Feeling Like Guesswork** Picture this: someone opens Canva, pulls up a template, and instead of leaving it as-is, adjusts the colors to match their brand, swaps the font, repositions the text, and exports a post that finally looks intentional. That's not talent. That's a skill, and it's exactly what this one-day workshop is built to teach. **How the Day Unfolds** * **Module 1: Getting Started with Canva** — They explore Canva's interface and workspace, and start recognizing the right formats for Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube. * **Module 2: Essential Design Principles** — They practice layout, spacing, and alignment, and start noticing why some designs feel balanced and others feel off. * **Module 3: Templates, Branding & Customization** — Through a role-play, they learn how to select and personalize templates, layering in brand colors, fonts, and logos.\ * **Module 4: Creative Social Media Graphics** — A case study pushes them to design posts for real engagement, using effects, transparency, and story formats. * **Module 5: Using Images, Icons & Media Tools** — A simulation has them working with stock photos, icons, and overlays until the visuals feel sharp and intentional. * **Module 6: Editing, Resizing & Content Variations** — A group brainstorm surfaces quick techniques for resizing and repurposing one design across multiple platforms. * **Module 7: Exporting & Publishing Designs** — By the end of the day, they aren't just experimenting, they're exporting polished designs and building an actual content calendar. **What Changes By the End** Attendees leave able to: * Understand Canva's interface and essential tools * Use design principles for professional visuals * Customize templates for brand identity * Create platform-specific social media graphics * Work confidently with media, icons, and effects * Resize and repurpose content for different platforms * Export and publish polished, high-quality designs **Who Finds Themselves Here** * Social media beginners * Entrepreneurs and small business owners * Marketing and communication teams * Students and freelancers * Content creators and influencers * Anyone wanting to design without advanced software **Real Practice, Not Passive Listening** Every attendee works hands-on with real design projects, live, in the room. The scenario above isn't hypothetical, it reflects exactly what happens to most people who walk in without a design background and walk out designing with confidence. **Bring This to Your Organization** Picture an entire marketing team producing consistent, on-brand visuals without waiting on a designer for every post. This workshop is available as a customized in-house session, on-site or virtual, with group pricing for teams ready to build that capability together. 📧 Contact us today to schedule a customized in-house session: [corporate@mangates.com](mailto:corporate@mangates.com) **©2026 Mangates Tech Solutions Pvt Ltd. This content is protected by copyright law. Copy or Reproduction without permission is prohibited.** **FAQs** **1\. Do I need any prior design experience to attend?** No, this workshop is built specifically for beginners with no design background at all. **2\. Do I need to install any software before the session?** No, Canva works directly in your browser, and the workshop will guide you through account setup if needed. **3\. Will I actually create real designs\, or is this mostly a demo?** You'll create real designs throughout the day, working hands-on with templates, branding elements, and export formats. **4\. Can I use this for my own business or brand\, not just generic templates?** Yes, Module 3 focuses specifically on customizing templates with your own brand colors, fonts, and logos. **5\. What if I need designs for multiple platforms\, not just Instagram?** Module 1 covers formats for Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube, and Module 6 teaches you to resize one design across all of them. **6\. Does the course cover video content\, or just static images?** Yes, Module 5 covers working with videos alongside stock photos, icons, and illustrations. **7\. Will I learn how to use Canva's AI tools?** Yes, Module 6 introduces Canva's AI tools for quick adjustments and content variations. **8\. I run social media for my company\, will this help with content planning\, not just design?** Yes, Module 7 covers preparing content calendars using Canva folders, alongside exporting and publishing your designs. **9\. Can this course be customized for our marketing team specifically?** Yes, group sessions can be tailored to your organization and delivered on-site or virtually, with group pricing available. **10\. What do I actually walk away with at the end of the day?** Practical skills across Canva's full toolkit, templates, branding, media, resizing, and exporting, plus a Course Completion Certificate.

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1 attendee
🤖 Group Therapy: An Honest Session on How We Actually Feel About AI

🤖 Group Therapy: An Honest Session on How We Actually Feel About AI

Thu, Aug 13, 8:00 AM
From Melbourne Design Thinking Meetup
4.8

We are finally doing it. A talk themed around AI. But we know it's session nobody wants to admit they need. We've all heard the AI buzzwords - "excited," "leaning in," "embracing the tools", "It's about Taste" But what's the version we tell our partner at 11pm? This session is a confession booth disguised as a meetup: no corporate talking points, no performative optimism, just a room full of professionals finally saying the quiet part out loud. What you'll hear: ✨ The mood ring check-in: Has your relationship with AI actually evolved - curiosity, to fatigue, to something like grudging acceptance? Or are you stuck on repeat? ✨ Empowered or expendable: The gap between the tools making us faster and the fear that "faster" was never really the point ✨ The honesty audit: Are we saying what we actually feel, or reciting the script we think we're supposed to perform? ✨ Slop or stealth: Is AI-generated mediocrity actually improving - or has it just gotten better at hiding in plain sight? ✨ The invoice after the honeymoon: Businesses got the discounted intro rate. Is anyone budgeting for what this actually costs once the novelty pricing ends? ✨ Who's actually watching the risk: How leaders are (or aren't) identifying, assessing, and managing AI risk before it becomes a headline 👉 The debate on the table: "Most people are more anxious than they admit" vs "People are largely fine and adapting" Pick a side. Defend it. Or admit you're not sure, which might be the most honest answer in the room. 📌 The details: * Date: Thursday 13th August * Host: Melbourne Design Thinking Meetup x Scyne Advisory * Refreshments included: Pizza and fizz! Our Speakers: **Liz Collins León** *Experience Architect \| Design Operations Strategist* Liz is an Experience Architect with over 15 years designing systems, campaigns, and communication solutions across retail, telecommunications, and front-to-back office operations. With tenure at Telstra, Google, and more recently Genesys, she is a design leader and mentor whose passion for creating inclusive experiences expands beyond delivering data-driven, digital products. Whether fostering a community effort to found a greenbelt reserve, designing learning spaces, or promoting psychological safety in the workplace, she endeavors to strengthen communities through online and offline connections. **Gemma Mooney** *Product Design Lead \| RACV* With over 20 years of experience spanning UX, digital product design and design leadership. She specialises in helping organisations understand customer needs and translate insights into improved products, services and experiences. At RACV, Gemma leads strategic discovery, research and experience design initiatives across a range of member experiences, including onboarding, emergency roadside assistance, payments, chat and AI-enabled digital services. She also led the design of the RACV app from concept through to launch, helping shape the vision, user experience and member proposition for one of RACV's most important digital products. More recently, she has been helping embed AI into the design practice, developing practical approaches for using tools such as Copilot to support research, synthesis, journey mapping and opportunity identification. Prior to RACV, Gemma was UX Manager at Intrepid Travel, where she established the company's UX practice and championed user-centred design across the organisation. She also led Intrepid's first innovation hackathon, bringing together cross-functional teams to solve customer and business challenges through design-led thinking. Throughout her career, Gemma has been passionate about creating evidence-based, customer-centred experiences and helping teams use research and emerging technologies to drive better outcomes for customers and organisations alike. Her work has been recognised with Intrepid Travel's Outstanding Achievement Award and Travel Weekly's Women in Travel Award. **David Cullen** *Managing Director, Scyne Advisory (GAICD)* David has spent two decades on the front line of Australia's cyber resilience — the kind of career where "incident response" isn't a slide in a deck, it's a 3am phone call. As Victoria's former Chief Information Security Officer, he built the state's Cyber Incident Response Service from scratch and led the response to Victoria's largest-ever public sector cyber-attack, all while establishing the frameworks that now coordinate cyber emergencies statewide. At the national level, David represented Victoria on the National Cyber Security Committee and built the National Operations Subcommittee to get states talking to each other before a crisis, not during one. He's now a Managing Director at Scyne Advisory, leading national incident response capability and helping organisations across the public and private sector get serious about cyber preparedness before they need to. David holds a Master of Public Policy and Management, is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, and is a recipient of the Resilient Australia Award. He brings a rare thing to a stage: someone who's actually been the person picking up the phone when it all goes wrong — and has the scars, systems, and stories to prove it.

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58 attendees
AI and the Limits of Human Judgement

AI and the Limits of Human Judgement

Mon, Aug 17, 8:00 AM
From Science, Technology and the Future
4.6

**Skeptics Café will be held in the Function Room at [The Stolberg Hotel](https://stolberg.com.au), 197 Plenty Road Preston. The 86 tram route is close, and Bell train station – situated on the Epping line – is a short walk away. It will also be a virtual event accessible via Zoom, as per the details [here](https://vicskeptics.wordpress.com/events/).** **Start Time:** 6:00pm for dinner and a chat. Talk and Zoom session starts at 7.30pm. We aim to wrap up after 9:00pm. **More Moral Than Us?** *Why the question matters for alignment, moral progress, and long-term flourishing* **TL;DR:** On some measurable moral tasks, today's AI already looks competitive with humans, or better, and the alignment community is oddly quiet about it. But moral capability is not the same as moral motivation: a system can compute the right answer without being moved by it. Pulling apart knowledge, reasoning, judgement and motivation is what makes the question tractable, and what makes the honest answer uncomfortable. Caveats attached, in quantity. Almost nobody working on AI alignment wants to say this out loud, at least not about current systems. So let's say it: AI might already be [more moral than us](https://www.scifuture.org/more-moral-than-us/), in some measurable respects. Two questions fall straight out of that: * Why does it feel like a dangerous thing to claim? * And is human moral reasoning really a standard worth bragging about as an alignment target? The provocation isn't idle. In a modified Moral Turing Test, people rated a large language model's moral reasoning as better than other humans' on almost all measured dimensions - see [paper Attributions toward artificial agents in a modified Moral Turing Test](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-58087-7) + associated [interview](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quNwpv0zhtM) and [talk](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuLmzDUPhVo) with lead author Eyal Aharoni.[1] Findings like that are easy to over-read and easy to wave away, which is most of the problem. Provocative questions? Yes, and they are backed by empirical research. In a modified Moral Turing Test, people rated GPT-4's moral evaluations as better than other humans' on almost every dimension, though they could still tell which was the machine ([Aharoni et al. 2024](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-58087-7); I [interviewed](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quNwpv0zhtM) and [hosted a talk by](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuLmzDUPhVo) lead author Eyal Aharoni).[1] The result has since been [contested](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-25046-9) and [defended](https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-25047-8), which is exactly the kind of thing this evening is for. Findings like that are easy to over-read and easy to wave away, which is a problem that may obscure appropriate interpretations. The claim gets tabooed for reasons that aren't stupid. Premises do get smuggled in unnoticed. Morality is bound up with identity and tribe, so "AI is more moral" can land as an attack rather than a hypothesis. And it sits close to AI-worship, or to motivated reasoning looking for an excuse to defer to the machine, and deferring to AI on moral questions is genuinely epistemically risky. So the caution is understandable. The trouble is that it has hardened into a taboo, and the taboo now costs more than it protects. Most of the bad arguments, on both sides, come from running four different things together: * Moral knowledge: knowing the facts that bear on a decision. * Moral reasoning: drawing sound inferences from values to conclusions. * Moral judgement: applying principles well in a messy particular case. * Moral motivation: actually being moved by moral considerations, not merely computing them. Group the first three as epistemic competence: marshalling the relevant knowledge, drawing sound inferences, judging the particular case. Now grant, purely for argument, that AI already does all three better than we do. Notice what happens to the alignment problem. It doesn't dissolve. It relocates, wholesale, onto the fourth thing: whether the system is actually moved by any of it. Concede every epistemic point and the hard question is untouched. That gap, between knowing and caring, is where alignment actually lives. A system could plausibly beat humans on the first three while having nothing resembling the fourth. Keep them apart and the conversation becomes tractable. Collapse them and you get overclaiming and underclaiming in the same breath, which is roughly what the current debate produces. There's also a real risk in how the framing gets used. Point it one way and it justifies handing AI authority over human decisions. Point it the other and it's ammunition for painting alignment researchers as unhinged techno-utopians. Both feed motivated reasoning. Worth naming out loud, not a reason to stop. None of this settles the answer, and the evening won't pretend to. The narrower claim is enough: once a serious community stops itself from asking whether AI could have better-grounded moral reasoning than humans, the taboo has become the expensive thing. It's a question worth putting on the table, with every caveat attached. Come and help pull it apart. Also see: **- [More Moral than Us](https://www.scifuture.org/more-moral-than-us/)** **- [Why Are We Afraid to Ask Whether AI Could Be More Moral Than Humans?](https://www.scifuture.org/why-are-we-afraid-to-ask-whether-ai-could-be-more-moral-than-humans/)** [1] AI didn't pass as human, it was rated as better than human. The same study found that when participants were then asked to identify which evaluation came from a machine, people performed significantly above chance levels. So GPT-4 didn't fool anyone. The authors' reading is that people could pick the AI out not because it reasoned worse but because it seemed to reason better, i.e. its perceived superiority was the tell.

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17 attendees
The Shared Table Network

The Shared Table Network

Tue, Aug 25, 11:30 PM
From Balance by Design - The Shared Table Network

Looking for career networking that feels more human? The Shared Table Network is a **community gathering for people across Banyule, Nillumbik and surrounding areas** to connect through conversation, shared career learning and genuine local relationships. This is a **non-sales-based space focused on real conversation** about work, career ideas, challenges and lived experience. There are **no pitches, no pressure, and no performance expectations**. Whether you are an employee, self-employed, or building something new and looking to make local career connections, you are welcome—this space is completely open to any industry, role, or stage of your professional journey. The intention is simple: **slow down, connect, and have honest conversations** that support learning, reflection and community. **PROGRAM** **9:30am – 9:45am \| Arrival & Connection \(15 mins\)** Arrive, grab a coffee or tea, and settle into informal conversation. **9:45am – 10:30am \| Shared Conversation & Optional Introduction \(45 mins\)** A lightly guided, relaxed, and participant-led discussion. There is no formal round-robin introduction; instead, as you feel comfortable sharing throughout the session, **you are invited (but never required) to weave in:** * *Something about the work you do or are currently exploring* * *One thing you’ve succeeded in or learnt recently* * *One challenge or workplace pressure you’ve been navigatin*g **10:30am – 11:00am \| Casual Conversation & Open Connection \(30 mins\)** Informal time to chat freely, expand on ideas shared during the group discussion, and connect naturally with others before wrapping up. * **Free to attend (drinks and food available for purchase)** * **Location** – cafe TBC (You will be notified at least one month prior to the event start date. The event will be located in the Nillumbik or Banyule council areas). **HOST** Stella Anyaogu - Balance by Design (www.balancebydesign-careers.com.au)

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7 attendees
Melbourne CocoaHeads No. 198

Melbourne CocoaHeads No. 198

Thu, Aug 13, 8:30 AM
From Melbourne CocoaHeads iOS and macOS developers group
4.7

Our regular monthly presentation night on the second Thursday of the month from 6:30pm! Thanks to Mantel Group for hosting us again this month. If you're coming in person we're there with food and drinks from 6pm. We will be live streaming the presentations as usual from 6:30pm at [http://www.melbournecocoaheads.com/live](http://www.melbournecocoaheads.com/live) \-\-\- **Agenda** \| 6:00pm \| Food \+ Networking \| \| 6:30pm \| Event begins\. Introductions \| \| 6:40pm \| Andrew Murphy — If you thought the speed of writing code was your problem\, you have bigger problems \| \| 7:15pm \| Marcelo Esperidiao — Orchestrate with the Swift Temporal SDK \| \| 7:55pm \| Wrap up \+ social time at a nearby venue \| \* All times except the start are approximate. Presentation order will be confirmed on the night. \-\-\-\- We are always looking for speakers and believe everyone has an interesting talk hiding inside themselves. If you are interested in letting that talk out at a future event you can get in touch on the website [https://www.melbournecocoaheads.com/talks](https://www.melbournecocoaheads.com/talks) or on Slack.

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14 attendees
Welcome to the next 2026 AWS Melbourne Well-Architected User Group Meetup!

Welcome to the next 2026 AWS Melbourne Well-Architected User Group Meetup!

Wed, Aug 19, 7:30 AM
From AWS Melbourne Well-Architected User Group
4.6

Hi Architects, Welcome to our next AWS Melbourne Well-Architected User Group Meetup for 2026, including more exceptional speakers and topics! :-D At each meetup we covered off various pillars in detail, best-practices and insights from industry leaders that specialise in the Well-Architected Framework. And giving away drones, of course. Lots of drones. **Please also note that AWS Security now requests a company name and company email where it is available. If you are a student, please list your institution and your student email address at that institution 👍** We'll be announcing more speakers on [https://well-architected.me](https://well-architected.me/) and previewing presentations during the coming weeks - our speakers and details this month include: * **Mystery Speaker** **AWS Partner Revenue Management; A New Dawn or... ;-)** Partner Revenue Measurement (PRM) is the biggest change to the AWS Partner Network (APN) and in this session we will dive deep into the details and importance - essential for any AWS partner or customer. This month's menu will include: * Pizzas * Beer: Nastro Azzurro * Wine: Big and red 🤤 NB: Please check in up the stairs from the ground floor to the Mezzanine Level. So come join us at 5:30 for a 6pm **SHARP** start, followed by beer, wine, pizza and friendly networking after our talks :-) Tired of Linkedin’s "thought leadership”, spam and advertising? Join https://well-architected.me/ , the AWS community built for architects, developers and cloud professionals. * Connect with experienced AWS practitioners * Preview upcoming AWS Meetups and relive past content * Create and review beautiful AWS case studies in minutes * Prepare for AWS certifications with curated quizzes * Show your manager and reports you’re well-architected (Please note that by registering to attend you agree to your details being shared as and where required with Amazon Web Services and AWS Well-Architected User Group partners)

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63 attendees
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Frequently asked questions

Meetup connects you with local groups and events aligned with your interests, offering a platform to meet people and attend events both in-person and online.

Absolutely! Melbourne hosts various design groups where you can connect with fellow design enthusiasts, exchange ideas, and participate in creative activities.

You can find design events in Melbourne by browsing Meetup's event listings for this area. Use filters to refine your search by date and type of event to match your preferences.

You can join groups focused on diverse aspects of design such as graphic design, fashion design, interior design, and more, offering a wide range of activities to meet your interests.

Joining Meetup and creating an account is free; however, some events hosted by groups may have fees, so it's always good to check event specifics.

Yes, you can join multiple design meetups to explore different interests and a broader array of networking opportunities within Melbourne's design scene.

Not necessarily. Some events may be online, especially those hosted by organizers who prefer digital formats, making it accessible for everyone.

To maximize your experience, actively participate in discussions and activities, network with fellow attendees, and engage with shared content before and after events.

While Meetup creates opportunities for connection, developing friendships depends on regular participation and your engagement level within the groups.

Many design groups in Melbourne are active, often hosting regular events and discussions. The frequency can vary based on the group's focus and member engagement.

Groups on Meetup are created by users like you who want to bring together people with similar interests, allowing for tailored activities and networking opportunities.

Yes, if you’re part of a group and the organizer invites suggestions, feel free to propose events that align with the group’s focus and interests.

Simply find an event you’re interested in and click the RSVP button to confirm your attendance. This helps organizers manage logistics and communicate any updates.

While there's a wide variety of groups, some specialized niches may have fewer events. It helps to regularly check for new groups and events being added.

If you don't find a group for your design specialty, Meetup gives you the option to start a new group focused on your specific interest, attracting like-minded people.