{"id":134908,"date":"2021-09-15T10:15:40","date_gmt":"2021-09-15T08:15:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/medios.uchceu.es\/actualidad-ceu\/?p=134908"},"modified":"2023-03-27T09:18:31","modified_gmt":"2023-03-27T07:18:31","slug":"miguel-mojica-and-waterlight-sustainable-design-to-bring-light-to-dark-places","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/medios.uchceu.es\/actualidad-ceu\/en\/miguel-mojica-and-waterlight-sustainable-design-to-bring-light-to-dark-places\/","title":{"rendered":"Miguel M\u00f3jica and Waterlight: sustainable design to bring light to dark places"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

His lamp, designed in conjunction with Wunderman Thompson Colombia<\/a> and E-dina<\/a>, provides 45 days\u2019 worth of light from just half a litre of salt water and has won three Cannes Lions awards in 2021<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

It is thought that around 840 million people across the world do not have access to electricity. Miguel M\u00f3jica<\/a>, a designer from Colombia who undertook a Master\u2019s Degree in Product Design at CEU UCH<\/a><\/strong>, has worked together with staff from Wunderman Thompson<\/a> in Colombia and E-dina<\/a>, to create Waterlight<\/a><\/strong>, their answer to the world\u2019s urgent need for clean energy. After studying Design at CEU UCH, Miguel has stayed on in Valencia. He now works for ISABA Projects, where he designs urban and aquatic leisure spaces, especially those for children, and with the aim being to promote a healthier society through fun physical activities, but he also remains committed to sustainability and development. As part of his freelance work, he has taken part in the creation of Waterlight<\/a>, a device which provides 45 days\u2019 worth of light from just half a litre of salt water<\/strong>. This \u201cdesign miracle\u201d is well worthy of a prize and, in fact, it has received three: a Silver Lion in the design category and two Bronze Lions in the innovation and social responsibility categories at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity 2021<\/a> in France.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tell us about Waterlight and how it is possible that this design can \u201cbring light to dark places\u201d using just half a litre of salt water?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every country faces a multitude of real problems that can be resolved when teams can come together and create synergies.  In this case, I think the key thing, besides being able to generate light from salt water, is that a team has come together to work towards a common goal: to light up the lives of the Way\u00fau community in Colombia. And so, the miracle, as you have called it, is just the end result of a great collaborative project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why did you decide to work on this sustainable design project? What motivated or inspired you to begin its development?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was so pleased when the Wunderman Thompson agency decided to work with me on this project. To be able to develop this project from scratch was a real thrill and even more so because of the ultimate aim: \u201cto bring light to La Guajira\u201d. Being so far away from my home country, I thought it was a great opportunity to contribute to the new energy revolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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You\u2019ve been responsible for the whole design process for Waterlight, but who were your project partners in Colombia?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Behind every great idea there\u2019s always a great team and Waterlight is a great example of this. I worked with the Wunderman Thompson Colombia team, who are masters of advertising, creativity and innovation, and with E-dina, an engineering company focusing on clean energy who will shape the future of energy sustainability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The team members included Pipe Ruiz, Rene Rojas, Giovanny Leal, Gustavo Tovar, Nicol\u00e1s Pinz\u00f3n and many other people who over time joined this project. Together, we gave shape to Waterlight, right down to the last detail: it had to be perfect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were several stages to this process, as we considered materials, usability and how it would fit into the user environment. The creative process was really quite interesting but, above all, productive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You gained three awards at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, for design, creativity and responsibility. Are these the things that define Waterlight?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Taking part in the Cannes festival in France was another challenge for us. We knew it wouldn\u2019t be easy, but not impossible either. And yes, I think those three words could define what Waterlight is: it\u2019s an idea with a social purpose, using innovation to ensure a product is fully suited to the actual environment it is used in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Were you expecting to achieve this success at an international festival? There must have been stiff competition.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fact that Waterlight started to go viral on social media around the world was a great source of motivation for the team. I think the outcome has been the just reward for the team\u2019s many hours of hard work and determination to ensure that the project was a success. You\u2019re always a bit worried about the competition, especially when you\u2019re talking about competitors from across the world. There were a lot of really great projects there and Pipe Ruiz was the one who, late at night and early in the morning, kept me up to date with the different stages of the competition we went through: his voicemails became updates that I really looked forward to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your work shows your sensitivity for sustainable design and your determination to provide solutions to real problems. Do you think design can change the world?<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Definitely. Throughout history, design has transformed the world, and revolutionized and disrupted environments. With Waterlight, we\u2019re taking a step forward towards responsible and sustainable design and our profession has a duty to do that. We can\u2019t radically change everything from one day to the next, so it\u2019s the small revolutions which will end up creating real change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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