A thousand voices

A THOUSAND VOICES DESIGN FOR SOCIAL CHANGE

ACK NOW LEDG MENT This book is the result of two years full of new experiences, challenges, and accomplishments during my MFA in Graphic Design at Boston University, and I cannot find a better word to describe this journey than “exciting”.

I have to admit that even though making this book was not my first option as my thesis project, I’m happy and grateful for what it became of it and I feel it is necessary to make an acknowledge of the things that make it possible.

“A Thousand Voices” would not exist without the collaboration and support from my teachers and colleges helping me all the time with their constant tutoring and feedback through the duration of the program. Today, I finally understand that they were there with the main objective of guiding us in our design practice through a series of projects and experiments to open our eyes to new possibilities and find our motivations as designers.

If something I’ve learned in this program is that every artist and designer work has been influenced by our experiences, failures, achievements, and aspirations.

To get to know what kind of designer we are or want to be, we need to discover first what has left a mark in our lives and therefore, our work.

My path in the MFA made me notice that my work as a graphic designer has a strong connection with my past and culture but more importantly, it has a stronger desire to connecting with the people. Most of my projects show initiatives related to interactive design, the importance of storytelling, my culture, and the desire of provoking to generate social change. “A thousand voices” is now a medium where I was able to combine the things that are important for me as a designer.

DESIGN FOR SOCIAL CHANGE This book has the purpose of helping and inspire others in their search for social change. The intention behind “A Thousand voices� is to function as a guide to whoever is seeking to give a voice to the voiceless through design.

I intend to inspire others into creating designs for social change and guide them through my own experience and design process. This is a call for action, to demand attention and speaks loudly to those who would otherwise look away.

I am giving a voice to those who need it most hoping others will join me.

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WHAT IS DESIGN FOR SOCIAL CHANGE?

START BUILDING YOUR PROJECT FOR SOCIAL CHANGE FIND A PROBLEM

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RESEARCH

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PARTNERSHIP

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RESOURCES

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THINKING PROCESS THE MESSAGE

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THE AUDIENCE

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INSPIRATIONS

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CONSTRAINS

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THE FORM

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MAKING PROCESS

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EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED

PUBLIC IMAGE

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DOCUMENTATION

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FOR A COMPLETE EXPERIENCE PLEASE DOWNLOAD ARTVIVE AND SCAN THE PAGES WITH THE FOLLOWING ICON

WHAT IS DESIGN FOR SOCIAL CHANGE? All design has a social impact.

It influences how to dress, what to eat, and even your relationships, all design impacts society.

Design for social change, on the other hand, is the practice of finding opportunities for change that give voice to those who have been marginalized the most, to give a voice to the voiceless, to the one that needed the most. It is a challenge for us to go beyond designs that simply improve the lives of people who use them. We are called, instead, to make a change for societies as a whole.

To design for social change.

It is fundamental to understand that as designers we have the capacity to create designs to generate a change in society.

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An important key to designing for social change is what we call the butterfly effect or ripple effect.

We need to get to understand how design can generate experiences to drive individual actions, that performed by many individuals, drives to a bigger outcome. For example, when a family from a poor environment takes the action to send their daughter to school, and a hundred families do the same, the outcome is often fewer child marriages, a lower birthrate, increased access to credit, and many other factors that contribute to an even more equitable society, or social change for the better.

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is critical in design for social change

The success of any project for social change will not come from an object or product, but with feedback and observation.

It is not about what the designer has made, but by what the user has experienced and people’s responses.

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HOW TO BUILD A PROJECT FOR SOCIAL CHANGE Making big changes or starting something new can be hard.

The bigger the change is to accomplish, the more difficult it can seem.

But we just need to remember that any big change is simply a series of individual, decisive actions.

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FINDING A PROBLEM The first thing you need to do is find a problem or something you would like to change in society or your community.

For Instance, when I moved to live in Boston it came to my attention the number of homeless people that I encounter every day. I was able to see how they struggle every day for the most common things, especially during the winter season. I also notice how everybody decided to ignore them, to turn blind every time they were passing next to them. Almost as if they suddenly they were invisible.

There was my problem, that’s what I wanted to change.

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The Homeless Project Looking for problems in the homeless project I ended up finding too many. For instance, the conditions they live in, the number of struggles that as homeless they experience every day, the public opinion that put an addict label to all people without a home, the general indifference from the community, and can keep going on. Getting to decide on which issue I wanted to focus the project on was a difficult task.

The reason behind wanting to make a project to help the homeless is because I’ve had the opportunity to meet people living on the streets and get to know their stories. There are indeed several addiction cases related to the living situation of many, but there are others who are not getting help and suffer from difficulties while trying to remake their lives because of the general opinion of the homeless as junkies.

There is a lot of misinformation about the homeless, and the solution is not to turn the cold shoulder to the problem but to confront it.

It doesn’t matter how much people try to make them invisible, they are human beings and they are still there.

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RESEARCH Once you’ve decided on which problem to work on, the next step is to make a research about it, the more information you collect the easier will be to come up with ideas and create a concept.

Look at many sources of information as possible. Talk or interview professionals about the issue, get to know the public opinion making surveys, look into the work that others have made, and what it is even more important it to talk with. whoever is experiencing the problem with want to solve.

Each problematic will lead to a different set of questions, but in my experience, there are three things that everybody needs to answer before going further: 1.

2.

3.

Who experiences this issue?

What is the source of the problem?

What has been done?

It is possible to encounter different opinions and points of view during your investigations and you may agree or disagree with some of them. Use the communities that shares an ideology similar to yours for open conversations, ideas or collect information. If you want to, use the ones you strongly disagree as a target, study their points of view, try to discover which circumstances made them things their way and if you are up to, try opening a debate. It will surprise you how many times looking at the opposite side can provide you with useful information for your project.

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WHO EXPERIENCES THIS ISSUE? Mostly the person who lost his house and is currently living on the streets, but it also affects our community.

I think it Is important to acknowledge that being in a homeless situation can happen to anybody. If you think about it, the person that is currently living on the streets was somebody neighbor, friend, or family member once.

Sometimes all it takes for somebody turn into a homeless is to go through harsh circumstances.

I always have in mind that I’m not a 100% extent of this problem, and neither are you. Would you like somebody to help you if you are in a situation like that? I think that if people start being aware of this, maybe the next time they would think twice before ignoring the homeless.

Would you still make them feel invisible?

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WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF THE PROBLEM? WHY THEY CANNOT STOP BEING HOMELESS?

The circumstances for somebody to turn into a homeless can be too many. Several cases, the reason behind for people to lose their homes is for difficulties in their finances, an unexpected sickness that requires expensive treatments, debts or loans, etc.

Just trying to solve these circumstances can be extremely difficult if not impossible, which means in these cases, we need to look at the next closest thing.

Getting to understand the general opinion can be quite useful, so I decided to make a quick survey and ask people which word would they use to describe a homeless? These are some of the answers given to the question: dirty, stinky, addict, lazy, untrustworthy, poor, dangerous, sad, hungry, loneliness, crazy, etc.

It is obvious that most people don’t have a good opinion about the homeless and unfortunately, it is for this reason that many homeless find difficult to find job opportunities.For them to stop being homeless, they need to be a part of our community again, with equal opportunities as the rest of us, but how can we provide it?

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WHAT HAS BEEN DONE? There is always a counterpoint for everything, and there are more people concern with the same things as you. Look at what has been already done, you most likely will find and organization, government programs, chat groups, etc. It is possible that you will be able to learn something from them, if you have the possibility get in touch with them. Make questions and seek for guidance or help.

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FIND A PARTNER Collaboration is fundamental in design, but even more in design for social change. “Products of design” once wrote an article talking about the importance of design, teamwork, and a vision for change.

“Design happens collaboratively, not as an individual act of craft or art- making.

As designers choose their partners, allies and collaborators, they take the opportunity to choose the voiceless-who have critical insights to contribute-and that they include the marginalized-whose perspectives are critical to making real change.”

It is important to give a voice to those who are not able to speak for themselves, but it is crucial to hear those voices first and honor the knowledge they bring.

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FRIENDS OF BOSTON HOMELESS It is the moment to find a partner.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help, and the more people are involved in your project the easier it will be to make it possible.

While making the project for the homeless, I look at several organizations and programs already existing trying to find good options. I knew that my main source would be working directly with the homeless but I needed to consider that the resources were going to be limited. Luckily, I found a group of people that shares the same ideologies and ideas as mine about this matter.

“Friends of Boston Homeless� is a non-profit organization that aspires for a longer solution to the problem of the people living on the streets, and I found their motto inspiring.

Everybody who works or volunteer in this organization focus their efforts in helping people to put their lives together, providing them with the tools and knowledge necessary to take advantage of the opportunities that are presented to them.

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WHAT ARE YOUR RESOURCES It is important to know how many resources do you have to make your project, and considerate which other can you get.

Make a list of resources and divide it in two parts: the things that you already count with and the ones you still don’t have. This will help you visualizing how big can you go.

For example, with the help of my new partner I had the opportunity to interact and get to know people struggling on the streets, hear their stories and their aspirations. The organization also taught me a lot of things I wasn’t aware like, correct ways of communicating with the homeless and some successful methods collected through years of experience.

But the biggest help provided from “Friends of Boston Homeless” was connecting me with the homeless in their program, the information I collected from their stories and experiences while living on the streets was extremely helpful.

I learned that sometimes a smile, a couple of nice words, a short conversation, or a good gesture can make their day brighter, happier. All that is needed is to let them know that they are no alone, it makes them feel they are not invisible, it gives them hope.

That day I learned that even the smallest gesture can make a huge difference.

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USE WHAT YOU HAVE Be wise and try to take advantage as much as possible of the resources that you already have.

FBH has a system focusing in 3 different ways of contributions.

Each project will have different outcomes and yours may be different but let’s use the homeless project as an example.

The first and most popular in non-profits is thought people donations. Food, money, and clothes are the most common essentials asked in support for the homeless. “Friends of Boston Homeless” in addition of the common supplies listed above, it also added some house essentials items in the donation list with the purpose of giving it to the person who is receiving a new home.

One of the most important resources at my disposition is having the opportunity to work with “Friends of Boston Homeless” and the advantages of working with a non-profit organization can be several. For instance, each non-profit organization have access to a social security number where donations can be directed, several surveys say that this helps feel people more comfortable making contributions, because this way people know where their donations will be headed, another advantage is that organizations have years of information and experiences collected, contacts, and a system you can use.

Another way of helping is giving your time. Everybody can donate a couple of hours to help organize a donation campaign or supporting the kitchen, but most of the time people volunteer to teach the homeless how to use computer programs, fill job applications, and others kind of skills that will help them being well prepare at the moment of finding a job.

Finally, but not less important. The third option is trying to change the bad perspective that some people have of the homeless. FBH is trying to accomplish this part by sharing the stories of those who have been helped. Sometimes those stories can change the way people look at them.

In my experience, learning how the organization works helped me came up with ideas and concepts.

It is your turn to thing how the resources in your list can be of help generating ideas.

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THINKING PROCESS Most likely, once you’re done collecting all the information and you’ve finished answering the questions from all the previous sections, some ideas will start coming to your mind, but before making any final decision you will have to go through a thinking process. This means, it is time to start being more specific.

Something of great importance in before going further is to set yourself a goal for your project, in other words, what do you want to accomplish?

This can help you generating ideas for a strong concept, and therefore form.

Putting my personal project as an example, I wanted to not just help getting donations for the homeless, but also try to create consciousness about the struggles they experience every day and change the bad opinion of people towards them. I wanted to use design to provide to my audience with a medium to collaborate and contribute through small gestures or actions.

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WHAT IS YOUR MESSAGE? One of the most important and difficult parts about design for social change, actually design in general, is finding the right message. Sometimes going through a thinking process can be tedious but once you’re done, everything else will easier to make and things will start falling into place.

If I take into consideration my previous research, the conversations with the homeless, the non-profit organization, several discussions and debates with teachers, collages, and other designers.

After taking their constant feedback and some deliberating I concluded that my message was ironically the same as the whole idea of this book.

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X

One may feel that doing something small doesn’t change anything, that the problem will not disappear just because the actions of one person. But if we think about those small gestures, these actions piling one after another, like snowflakes, then at some point we’ll cover everything on snow. It is true that the actions of one alone may go unnoticed as a community our actions will be seen.

Amazing homeless project by anonymous L.A. street artist

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WHO IS YOUR AUDIENCE? Once you’ve decided your message, it is essential in any project to know with whom are you communicating. And knowing your audience will help you set up with a system, a language, and in some cases other elements like color, style, audio, etc.

If you are having troubles finding your audience here is a small activity that have helped me several times.

Look at it as a pyramid or a tower where the source of the problem your working on goes in the top.

I like to think of it as the boss of the game, and as any RPG videogame sometimes getting to the boss on the first try is extremely hard if not impossible, for this reason you will have to think who would be the next in the chain of work and place it below the boss. you’ll continue filling the levels until you get to a level to can reach and EUREKA! That can be your audience.

I suggest you to fill one or two more levels more after finding your audience because all the levels are connected. The ones from the higher level often relies from the ones below them, and of you get to know how things work it will make the task of finding a proper way of communicating with that audience easier.

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-Signs for the homeless -American Duck -Hunger Leo Burnett -Text them home -Santa Cause

LOOK FOR INSPIRATION Don’t be afraid to look at others work, and don’t forget that inspiration can come from everywhere. The idea is not to copy what they have done but to analyze it, see what was a success and what it failed and question why.

This step is not necessary but I’ve found it helpful while thinking about my own project.

We’ve been influence by design our whole life and It is not strange for a designer to look at others work. We are critics by nature, which means that we decide to reject some artist because we don’t agree with their concepts and we follow some other ones because we find their work successful, inspiring, or appealing; It fits with our concept of esthetics.

Something I find fascinating about design is that if you give the same information, problem, and message to different designers, all will have different concepts and solutions.

As a practice I would suggest you the next time you like or dislike a project, try to thing why do you like it or not, consider what would you change and how would you improve it.

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DO NOT It is easy to think about all the things we can do, and most of the time we don’t think about our constraints, the things we can NOT do.

Everybody has restrictions as designers but sometimes having limitation is not a bad thing.

Try looking at it as an advantage, it may help you in your creative process. I’ll use again the constraints that I had in this project as an example. Working with a nonprofit gave me a ton of resources but I also needed to follow their rules. For instance, I couldn’t ask for money in my projects as donations and even when they share with me the stories from the homeless recorded by the organization, I was asked to not show their faces to avoid causing troubles to the homeless in their transmission into their new homes and/or jobs.

I still needed to give a “face” to those stories in order to create a stronger connection with my audience, I needed an identity. There is where my first idea of using the signs they use as homeless as their faces came to my mind and that was the spark that started everything.

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THE FORM Thinking about the form of your projects means finding a way of communicating with your audience, it is important to consider how are you going to present it and how people will interact and/or engage with it.

Finding an appropriate form is one of the most important parts of your project, so don’t rush. Make a list with all the ideas you’ve had so far and make sketches of it.

Imagine how your audience can approach it and if it has a physical form, specify where are you going to place it and why. If it is possible, make mockups or tryouts to test your concept.

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PROJECT #1 In the homeless project I decided to take the concept of small actions as the key element for the form. The final output was conformed with a series of small projects where people would be able to interact, learn, and/or contribute through small gestures.

The first project consisted on an interactive installation where people were able to realize a donation to create house warming baskets for the homeless that are receiving a home. Leo Burnett worked as my inspiration for this project, implementing the idea of subtraction to send a message and using one theory from branding that says that some people are more willing to help if they can be acknowledge for it, or if they can receive something in exchange.

Playing with the idea of the subtraction of elements, the dynamic was the following. if a person donates to one of the baskets they will be able to grab one of the tokens forming the word “LESS� and sign their names or leave a little note in the poster area. That same poster and the donations received will be use in the house warming party for a homeless in the program.

For better results this project needs to be installed near a place where people can easily get the supplies for donations, like supermarkets or outlets.

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PROJECT #2 The idea of the second project is to create consciousness.

It consisted in creating a platform able to put people into the homeless place at the moment of sharing their stories.

Using vinyl for longer installations or chalk for temporary one creates an outline poster on the streets to attract attention and mark the where the action will be taking place. In front of this frames will be placed littles signs with the story of a homeless written on small size fonts, this will force the person to take the action of sitting on the floor to be able to read properly. Therefore, the person will be able to experience things from a different perspective.

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PROJECT #3 The third and last project was meant for our thesis exhibition.

Without the ability to ask for donations during the event I focus again on sharing the homeless stories, but with a different form.

With the idea of creating an interactive installation where this time the story will be related from the homeless itself from an audio device. Because I wasn’t able to show their faces, instead I decided to use the sign the used to have while being in the street as their identities.

In order to play the audio and hear the story, people will have to touch the surface of the signs to activate through electric pulses connected to the recorder. .

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ON YOUR MARKS, READY... GO You must already have a strong concept for your project, now it is time to take those ideas outside of the paper and start making.

I highly recommend to document every step you take during this process because sometimes you enjoy and learn more from the journey than the final destiny.

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PUBLIC IMAGE Even though it is not completely necessary, most projects for social change will need an identity. The following couple of steps may be helpful for you.

The identity for your project can be pretty much everything, an icon, a phrase, or even a song but in most cases, it will need to come next to a visual and a name. Remember that this identity will become your brand, it will symbolize not just an image but also values and/or an ideology.

If you are making a logo or an icon do not make too complicated.

Several studies say that a logo has proximally 2 to 4 seconds to get the attention of a person, which means that the simpler your logo is, the easier it will be to remember. This is one of the basic rules in branding, “less is more�.

1. BAPTIZE

Sometimes giving a name to your project can be quite difficult, after all you will be naming your baby and that name needs to reflect your message.

2. TYPOGRAPHY

While selecting your typographic system is important to consider if your project will be digital or printed, what will be the best option to make it easier for your audience to read, and what is the meaning behind the typeface.

3. THE SYSTEM

Many brands makes little changes to adapt their logo to different mediums. Can your logo be modified? And if so, how?

You need to consider that making big changes in your logo is not ideal, especially if you are designing for social change.

It may send a wrong message and reflect instability.

Action. Change the meaning of the word and represent the act of giving a home to the homeless. It reinforces the philosophy of the organization of creating change through a small gesture.

Handwritten style typography inspired in the homeless signs (Bold type font made commonly with sharpies).

Color. Only use black and warm colors.

Another

(Logotype, main titles. Represents the language used homeless signs. Handwriting style using permanent markers. Irregular letter font)

Poppins

(Large bodies of text, final products provided for the homeless.

Clean and neat typography. It represents the transition of the person that stops being a homeless. Represents the change)

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DOCUMENT EVERYTHING You may feel is unnecessary but documenting your process is always a good idea. Sometimes some people have found that at the end the process have becomes more important that their final outcome, and if you are considering interactive design this may be your case.

Take pictures, videos, write about the process, the steps you followed, materials, etc. The documentation you’ll make will be a way of sharing your process with others.

Signature area. Poster for house warming party for the homeless

Take away area. Tokens/keychains take away. One per donation

39 in

19 in

66 in

tokens. inspire in messages from homeless signs. Material: acrylic.

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If you’ve finished with the making process of your project that means you’ve already passed the hard part but you are not done with your documentation. The next step is the presentations, this means you need to think about where are you going to place your project.

Finding the right spot to show your work can be as important as the piece itself. If your project can’t reach your target audience you won’t get the results that you are expecting. Think of places where your audience can be found.

And finally, documenting the results is one of the key points if you are designing for social change. Getting to know how people react and interact with your project will tell you how successful your project will be. I like to think of it as the final review and here is where I can get good feedback, acknowledge which parts of the project worked and which ones not that much.

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A NEW SITUATION There will be occasion where circumstances will not be in your favor and out of your control. This may result in setbacks or worse.

Don’t feel bad if your project fails.

Failure is a fundamental asset in design. Design that fails brings knowledge, and you may learn more from the thing that didn’t go the way you wanted to. It is important to be aware that design related to human society can be messy and unexpected, there isn’t certain answers so don’t be afraid to take risks and try new things.

Design for social change requires being aware of the inconvenience and how unexpected the human mind can be.

The project “WELCOME HOME” was schedule for installation and presentation at the end of march and beginning of April of 2020.

Unfortunately, before finishing the project the virus COVID-19 or commonly known as “coronavirus” reach several countries including the USA and started spreading quicker than anticipated. The virus presented at first like a new kind of flu that sometimes causes severe respiratory problems, with a period of incubation of 14 days, but most people didn’t worry that much because it affects primarily old and sick people.

In a really short period of time the virus became a pandemic and every day higher numbers of positive cases and deaths related to COVID-19 started to appear, so measures were taken. Without the insight of getting a vaccine soon, the government was forced to close all non-essential business trying to stop the quick spread of the virus and shortly after, we

entered into a lockdown, human interaction became a risk. That was the moment where people started to realize the gravity of the circumstances and it caused a wave of fear and panic.

The coronavirus not just disrupted our plans and projects, it disrupted our economy, our health, routines and lives. Classes and jobs moved into online meetings, and many others lost their jobs.

The interactive installation I designed for the project didn’t worked anymore with our new living situation, I wasn’t able to access to new materials, and I lost communication with the non-profit organizations I was working with.

Sadly, I didn’t have other choice but to put the project on hold until everything returns to normality.

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It is frustrating when a project doesn’t go the way you wanted but instead of focusing in the bad things, I would suggest you trying to look at the positive side.

I like to think that our job as graphic designers is not only to find solutions but to look at the possibilities.

Times are definitely different but good things starts to show little by little. People started to appreciate the smalls things in their lives and not to take things for granted, and a sense of community grew worldwide.

Italy was fighting the isolation with songs at the balconies every night, Spain made a wave of applaud to encourage their medics and nurses, and these are just some examples of people helping each other during harsh times. These are the kind of things I will never forget.

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QUARANTINE IN BOSTON These good deeds around the world inspire many people to follow their example and it also motived me as well. Now, I hope to inspire others to do the same.

Making a quick recount of the design process explained previously in this book I knew that even though the source of the problem was the virus itself I wasn’t able to do something in that matter, which leaves me with the second closest thing, the carriers.

One of the problems right now in Boston and many other states is that even though we are in lockdown and we are supposed to stay home to avoid spreading the virus even further, there are several others that are not following the rules and decide to go out anyways. I do understand that staying at home 24/7 is not ideal and it can be quite stressful but if we do not stop the curve the problem will never go away.

RESEARCH

The virus has an incubation time of 14 days. It affects more old and sick people. It causes severe respiratory problems. Even people that don’t show symptoms can spread the virus.

CONSTRAINTS

Being in lockdowns has a lot of disadvantages. For instance, limited materials, limited human contact, isolation.

RESOURCES

Essential business, internet, social media, basic printer, materials in stock.

The only way of making this go away is by staying united and make a collective effort.

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THE MESSAGE

When the number of positive cases and deaths for COVID-19 started rising in the USA all you were able to hear in the news and post casts was related to the virus and it was in one of John Rogan post cast that I heard somebody said “In moments like this one we need to stop thinking about I and start thinking as a WE� Somehow that got stuck in my mind, it was a good message and I decided to use it as the basis for the concept for this project.

My first project was inspired by an Instagram comedian from Spain.

During the lockdown in Spain, he volunteered to run the errands for the elder people in his apartment complex. it was a simple act but with a strong message and as a designer I wanted to improve it.

The main idea was not just to volunteer myself offering to help with my neighbors, but also to create a platform where others would be able to do the same and for that, I needed to create a visual.

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PRODUCTION

Making this poster was a little bit more challenging. My audience was mainly the elderly, which means that a physical form was necessary but due to quarantine, the number of resources at my disposition were very limited. Using the materials available at home I ended up doing the “pochoir” method, or better known as stencil technique. With the help of just a couple of plastic sheets, acrylics, and a sponge I was able to “print” a series of posters to place in common areas of my apartment complex.

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Download poster files

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WEEK 1 (Witout design)

WEEK 2 (With design)

A LITTLE EXPERIMENT To prove the influence that design has on people and demostrate that not just having a good idea is enough I decided to run a quick experiment.

I started placing the message plain and simple, without any design on it in places like the elevators and the mailroom, and a week later I replace those with the same message but with one of the posters next to it.

Offered to help Asked for help Stolen poster

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LOOKING AT WINDOWS Fortunately, I don’t live alone but after some time in quarantine, the desire of meeting with more people keeps growing day by day and I wasn’t the only one thinking the same way. Family, and friends living also in the USA in apartment complexes were also experiencing the same issue and what it started as a game, ended up turning as part of this project.

We started playing games and leaving messages in our windows for the people living in the building in front of us. It was a new way to interact with new people from the security of our homes and kill the boredom of the quarantine.

It was a great surprise to discover how much people were influenced by these positive messages and even family living in Chicago who participated in this dynamic made its appearance into the news.

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These projects, my thesis, and my work are just a way to let people know that even small actions matter. I aspire to make a difference and for that, I’m adding my voice to the many others that have inspired me, hoping others will join me.

Design ... activates voices. creates a space for opinions. shapes perspectives. cultivate change.

I hope this book was able to help you with your own projects and if it is of some help feel free to download and print the following file.

How to make a project for social change.

FINDING A PROBLEM

Make a list with problem in your community that you want to change or help with and select one as the final.

REASEARCH Find as much information as possible from the problem you selected, write notes with what you consider important data, and answer the following questions.

Print as many as you feel necessary

FIND A PARTNER

(OPTIONAL)

Look at those who are fighting for the same ideals as yours and reach for their help and guidance, you may find resources from them.

MY RESOURCES Make a list of the resources you already have

and another one with possible resources.

YOUR CONSTRAINTS Each project has constraints, which ones do you have?

WHAT IS YOUR MESSAGE? What do you want to communicate? Find a message that reflects what do you want to say.

WHO IS YOUR AUDIENCE?

Who will receive your message? Consider who or what is the source of your problem and use the information of your research to complete the tower. Place the source of your problem at the top, the next in the chain of command on the level below, and keep going until reaching an audience you can reach.

LOOK FOR INSPIRATION Look at other designers or projects related to your topic and make notes with the things you like or dislike, what it works and what would you change or improve.

BY:

BY:

THE FORM

Here is where you start thinking about the form of your project, make a list with all your ideas, and make as many sketches as you can.

Print as many as you feel necessary

PUBLIC IMAGE

(OPTIONAL)

Most projects for social change needs from a logo or identity. If this is your case complete the following questions using the examples of the book as a guide.

Print as many as you feel necessary

MAKING

Make a list of everything you will need to make your project and document as much as you can. Pictures, videos, surveys, everything.

Print as many as you feel necessary

THE RESULTS

After you’ve finished your project document what you felt it work and what changes would you make. If you can answer the following questions.