Butterfly Works

Butterfly Works is looking for a volunteer Illustrator to be part of an amazing longterm project benefiting women in the South Western Sahara of Morocco

TARAGALTE CULTURAL CENTER AND ECO-LODGE
The delicate balance of the ecosystem of the South Western Sahara of Morocco is in danger and the oasis villages are becoming engulfed with sand. Action is needed in different ways and on different levels.

Butterfly Works was captivated by this beautiful region, got involved with an intriguing project and will be part of it for the coming years sharing our experience in the field.

Part of the project is to build a Cultural Center focusing on preserving both cultural traditions and the environment in combination with empowering the local community.

Next to the Cultural Center a Bivouac / Eco-Lodge will be built to not only turn local tourism into sustainable tourism but to also make visitors a part of activities organized in the Cultural Center and create a cultural experience.

See photos from the area here.

Liberate the maker
The overall aim of Butterfly Works is to create possibilities for people in need (in developing countries) to (re)claim power over their own lives and initiate and bring to fruit their personal potential.

Creativity and craftsmanship is key in this process. This is what we call ‘Liberate the maker’. We work with groups, individuals, artisans and producers all over the world in order for them to make the personal contribution which they, as unique individuals, have to offer the world. We blend a passion for global justice with a commitment to build profitable businesses and brands.


The Taragalte project
This project consists out of three parts:

1. Taragalte Cultural Center
2. Taragalte Bivouac / Eco-Lodge
3. Abaraz Taragalte (Taragalte Festival)


Project philosophy
-Preserving tradition and environment - academic research, sustainable development
-Share cultural heritage, exchange knowledge and create understanding - through tourism, co-creation and cultural expression
-Stimulating economic and social development - through education, product development and tourism.
-Non-political - no political agendas
-Stimulating emancipation - creating opportunities for men and women and respecting cultural foundations
-Empower the local community - grassroots approach: giving local people the tools and know-how to enable self-sustaining development


The area
The area where both the Cultural Center and the Eco-Lodge will be built is a beautiful spot close to the Algerian border in the south of Morocco. The piece of land is surrounded by 13 very small villages where people from 3 different tribes live.

Most of the women have not been able to attend school and they are limited in their freedom because they are bound to the house to take care of the household. The whole area is not very developed and right now the only form of income is tourism.

Most people come to this region to spend a few days in the desert either riding a camel or using 4x4.

Together with the wonderful Sbai brothers (a large extended family who used to be caravan leaders up till 1954) and our partners, we are trying to change things for the better, especially for the women in the area.

The Cultural Center and Eco-Lodge
The Cultural Center and Eco-Lodge will become a community center both open to the local villagers and tourists who will help maintain the knowledge of the ancestral cultural heritage of the Moroccan Sahara for the following generations to come.

The Cultural Center will also create an educational value as workshops will be given in matters concerning the cultural, ecological and social way of life in this environment. Those visiting the Cultural Centre will be able to participate in meetings, dialogues and music.

It will also be possible to attend workshops creating traditional and hand made products.


The assignment
Currently Butterfly Works is looking for a volunteer illustrator that likes to play an important role in the communication between the project team and the local villages.

Since the woman speak a specific form of Berber and are mostly not able to read or write it’s not easy to make them understand what will happen in their surrounding and how they can play a vital role in the whole plan. The cultural centre will become an important place for them to study, to learn how to read and write but also a source of income.

By using images we hope to clarify a lot of things. The collection of drawings will form a storyboard that will be presented to the village elders at the end of April.

Next to this meeting we will print for each village a few booklets so the village elders can take them back to the villages and spread the news.

The woman will participate in the project by creating products that are used in the Eco lodge such as blankets, carpets, pillows, tables, trashcans, curtains, pots for plants etc etc.

Next to this the woman will host creative workshops in the future were tourists can learn about carpet making, embroidery etc etc.

Butterfly Works will decide and instruct on the key points that need illustrations and we will brief you on the exact setting of the images. We have a good collection of images and moving image to show you to get a impression of the region and its inhabitants.

Images we need
Draw the cultural centre and Eco lodge
Draw all the items that will be made by the woman
Make a drawing that represents all partners
Make a drawing that represents the woman
Make a drawing that represents the villages and distances
Make a drawing that represents the selection of the woman who will participate
Make a drawing of amounts that they will be paid


Style of drawings (to be further discussed)
The drawings will be made in black and white with maybe some accent colors
Postures and emotions / expressions are important
The drawings should not have an “development aid” feeling
Overall the feeling should be a clean crisp design statement
(please look at the example of Robert Baumann for postures and emotions)


Amount of drawings
Right now we would like to start with 20 drawings
Hopefully the collection will grow in the future


Future collaborations possibilities
Right now we are looking for someone that is willing to create 20 drawings as a start of the project. Based on these first 20 drawings we will seek for funding to continue working on this growing storyboard and create drawings for each step of the process.

This way we will at the end of the process be able to print a small booklet. If the funding is granted we have an (NGO) budget to invest in the following drawings (hopefully made by the same illustrator).

What’s in it for you
Work on a social design project in unique surroundings
Your name will be mentioned in the project and on the website that we will create
Your work will be profiled on the Butterfly Works website
Your work will be presented at a big “Design and development” conference in October 2010
Your work will be part of the guidelines that we are creating
Your work will be part of a series that we are publishing as a follow up of the Butterfly Paper
Possibly we will take you on a trip to Morocco in the fall (if we will continue to work together)
You will be part of a co-creation team consisting out of Dutch, Moroccans, Egyptian, Arabic and Berber people… (an eclectic mix)
We will introduce you to our partners

And... YES you will feel good because you know you are doing something good for the world!


About Butterfly Works
Butterfly Works is an inspiration-driven social solution and design studio.

The work at Butterfly Works can safely be called eclectic in its range from consumer social product design and distribution to the development of digital and mobile educational materials and learning environments.

Yet there is a common thread in all these works, in their innovative nature, their adherence to quality, their respect for everyone in the chain of events involved and possibly most importantly the centrality of the end user in the design process.

Butterfly Works invents, designs, and implements social events and so doing connects people, businesses and organizations always building a positive chain of events. Butterfly Works initiates projects and provides sustainable answers to international social issues.


Some Butterfly Works projects you might know:
Return to Sender with Katja Schuurman
Miffy’s play and learn with Dick Bruna
Picnic – surprising Africa
The World Starts With Me – just elected by Unesco as best practice
(For more projects please visit www.butterflyworks.org)


Partners in the Taragalte project
www.sahara-roots.org
www.taragalte.org
http://bureaueast.com


Why are we looking for volunteers?
For the last 10 years Butterfly Works has been able to create wonderful projects in amazing places. We would not have been able to do so without a lot of help from friends, volunteers and our dedicated staff.

Officially we are a development aid organization and we are funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for 60%. The other 40% we try to create by commercial work. But since we are always aiming for the best, the money is never enough… that’s a fact.

With the help of volunteers we can make our projects even more powerful and meaningful. Our volunteers range from lawyers to accountants to designers to project assistants to collaborations with complete studios.

Some volunteers donate 40 hours, some stay for 6 months. Of course we are willing to clarify our situation even more if necessary.


Are you interested?
Inspire us now by sending your CV and clear examples of your work to our colleague Anouar El Haji:

info@butterflyworks.org