¡Guateamala!

The project began five years ago when the Guatemalan Minister of Education on behalf of a collective of Guatemalan leaders called The Fundación Proyecto de Vida (Project for Life) wrote a letter to designer Bruce Mau and asked for his help to reshape the future of Guatemala and create a new vision for the country. After visiting the country Bruce Mau immediately fell in love with it and started the work.

“Guatemala is a land rich in history and pride. But that wealth hasn’t consistently propelled it towards a bountiful future,” Bruce Mau Design explained. “The Fundación Proyecto de Vida approached [us] with a provocative proposition: collaborate on a vision of the country to come, one powerful enough to establish a positive, united, hopeful, self-sustaining movement of national resonance.”

Serving as a blueprint for ¡GuateAmala! is a multi-year communications strategy that seeks to generate a strong collective interest across the population in this movement. Bruce Mau Design Studio has also worked with the Fundación to develop events that continue the discourse and action in different regions of Guatemala, to introduce projects to the world and link Guatemala to international expertise, highlighting the network for change emerging in Guatemala.

The design team explained that they approached the work embracing three strategies:

“First, we sought to show what was already happening in Guatemala, to help generate excitement and build a critical mass that looks forward. Second, we sought to spread project culture in Guatemala, identifying wild but plausible ambitions, with tangible goals and measurable outcomes. Third, we sought to connect the world with Guatemala, to help give Guatemalans a voice and a platform and, ultimately, opportunities for creative and entrepreneurial exchange.”