2022 / LAUS GOLD APORTA
Collaborative Social Design Campaign
Telmodice 2021. Málaga.
The Challenge of Humanizing a Concept: MENAS
Sometimes, the most rewarding work doesn’t come from seeking it out, but from being found. That’s how we feel at Buenaventura with the campaign We Want to Tell, We Want to Listen.
A few months ago, the San Telmo School in Málaga contacted us to launch a social design project as part of their annual graphic design festival, “Telmo Dice.” The choice of theme was open. We decided to focus on MENAS, given the depth and societal ignorance surrounding this issue. But every story has a beginning. Let’s start ours.
The Origin of the Story
Hamid, Adurraman, and Ali: Three Youths with a Dream
We Want to Tell, We Want to Listen is the story of Hamid, Adurraman, and Ali. They all enjoy eating pizza, watching Netflix, sports, listening to music, enjoying culture, hanging out with friends, studying, and working—essentially, the same as any other teenager in this country.
Same age and same interests, but with one particularity: Hamid, Adurraman, and Ali are MENAS, the acronym and legal term for ‘Unaccompanied Foreign Minors’ in Spain. They are the protagonists of this social design campaign, highlighting an issue that affects us all, though we may be unaware. What happens to these teenagers when they come of age?
The Harsh Reality of Former Foster Youth
Upon reaching adulthood, former foster youth must become independent. This means leaving their studies and finding full-time employment because the government now requires them to have their own income. This is a systemic inconsistency, as their residence permits do not allow them to work, and it doesn’t account for whether they receive social aid or public benefits.
The reality is harsh, very harsh. Even more so when society criminalizes and dehumanizes them with a term increasingly present: MENA.
Beyond the term, we must remember that Hamid, Adurraman, and Ali are three teenagers with a dream: to find a better future. A future away from the violence, poverty, and exclusion of their countries of origin. A dream that led them to leave their countries in search of opportunities before even turning 18.
In this context, the initiative for the design days at the San Telmo School in Málaga gave birth to the campaign We Want to Tell, We Want to Listen, focusing on two fundamental objectives:
- To bring visibility to the issues faced by former foster youth.
- To normalize the image of these kids as individuals who genuinely contribute richness and value to society.
The result is a transversal campaign with a series of elements, including:
- Static and mobile posters for MUPIs displayed on the streets of Málaga.
- A documentary video featuring the testimonies of Hamid, Adurraman, and Ali, and the campaign’s development process.
- Adaptations for press publications in El Sur and La Opinión de Málaga.
- Social media dissemination.
Collaborative Design | Social Design | Participatory Design
Beyond the results, the most gratifying aspect has been the co-creation process and collaborative design. While Buenaventura kick-started the project, many people have wanted to participate and get involved in giving a voice to the MENAS.
The project is a true creative melting pot that blends different ways of working:
Teachers and students from the San Telmo School in Málaga.
The studios Rubio & Del Amo (Murcia), Atipo (Asturias), and Buenaventura (Andalusia).
The three protagonists: Hamid, Adurraman, and Ali, whose stories and experiences have been vital in bringing this campaign to light.
The expert guidance from Genoveva Pérez, coordinator of the youth area at Málaga Acoge; Sara Agulló, lawyer at FEPA; and Elisabet Marco Areces, doctor and professor of Sociology and Anthropology at UV.
The Málaga City Council, which provided 45 MUPIs for the campaign launch.
Together, they have worked towards the common goal of visibility and normalization. All united around one challenge: how to achieve it?
MENAS: Humanaizing the concept
Choosing the term MENA as the communication axis was a difficult decision. NGOs recommend avoiding the term MENA because “it objectifies children and goes against the spirit of the Convention on the Rights of the Child,” explains Sara Collantes, policy officer for UNICEF Spain. Why then focus on this term? Convention on the Rights of the Child, explica Sara Collantes, policy officer for UNICEF Spain. Why then focus on this term?
The campaign’s challenge was precisely to soften that word. We needed to humanize the term MENA, change the perspective, and remove the pejorative connotation it usually carries. Social design was the tool for this.
However, changing that image is not easy, especially when misinformation, rumors, and digital infoxication are prevalent, and WhatsApp groups and Twitter are hotspots for the term MENA.
In reality, MENAS are teenagers transitioning into adulthood. They are kids taking advantage of educational resources, working, and contributing to society. Young people who also pay taxes so our parents, mothers, and grandparents receive their pensions and enjoy the welfare state. People who enrich the culture of our country.
The creative team’s key focus was to show the true reality of these former foster youths in their daily lives. To do this, we needed to depict their lives outside the hostile environments where they are often stereotyped.
These life testimonies in a normalized environment are what the different pieces of the campaign show: We Want to Tell, We Want to Listen.
The joint participation results in this interesting communication work. A rich graphic intervention from the perspective of social and collaborative design.
Through this workshop, Hamid, Adurraman, and Ali had the opportunity to really tell the world who they are and what they want to do.
Humanizing and bringing visibility. Seeing the initially proposed objectives fulfilled is priceless. Today, at Buenaventura, we can say this project has been like a gift. First, because it allows us to see the human dimension of design. And second, because we have witnessed how collaboration and participation of various social agents in the creative process can lead to projects with significant depth.
The next step is to ensure it doesn’t remain just a campaign but transcends and gains wide coverage.
Video: Fernando Cienfuegos y Adrián Nieto.
Photography: Julia Gracia y Juan Ramón Carneros.
