Four art school kids created Puerto Rico's first library for farmers, alongside the island's horticulturists. | Brand Identity

Projects for Peace

Role

Concept/Design/Project Management

Client

El Departamento de la Comida

Awards

Davis Projects for Peace Grant

01.-

the spark

Hurricane María devasted Puerto Rico as a Category 5 hurricane, and with 85% of food consumed on the island being imported, people were left waiting for help as most supermarkets were closed or scarce in inventory. For the last 50 years, the government’s focus on manufacturing rather than agriculture has caused an escalation of reliance on U.S. goods. After María, it is now evident that Puerto Rico shows a need to become more self reliant in regards to food production and distribution.

After consulting with El Departamento de la Comida, a grassroots collective for sustainable, resilient, and regenerative food on the island, we created a space for farmers that would provide tools, seeds, and educational materials to promote sustainable agricultural practices in Puerto Rico.





02.-

Remodeling

Our team remodeled a space in collaboration with La Tornilleria, a local tool shop. This served as an area for farmers to rent tools, read books on sustainable farming, and swap organic heirloom seeds. See below for some below and after shots of the resource library, named Agroteca. Made with blood, sweat, and/or tears.

03.-

Branding

I developed visual guidelines for El Departamento de la Comida and created custom patches with Concalma, a local sustainable clothing company, to promote the opening of Agroteca. Perfect for a jean jacket, which I may or may not be wearing as I type this.




04.-

Social

Updating the 'gram when you're on off-the-grid farms is a challenge, but one worth taking. Take a look at the day-by-day look at the team's progress and antics, curated by your truly.

05.-

Party Pa'l Proceso

On our last week, we threw a Process Party to showcase the newly renovated Agroteca. With food by local chef Betzy Cameron and beats by DJ Perra Mística, we celebrated with locals and gained more members for the library. Oh, and I also cried while giving my speech. There was something in my eye.

CREATIVE TEAM

Design: Emma Walls, Carmen Maria Ponce | Service Design: Bianca Rivera, Sarika Sajja