CyberBalamil
AR Ecostops and Festival
Merging Augmented Reality with Art and Nature for Ecological and Cultural Awareness
CyberBalamil (2024) is an immersive initiative that took place in San Cristobal de las Casas, Mexico.
The project merged augmented reality, ecological awareness, and cultural engagement and unfolded in two phases:
What I did
Strategic and Creative Direction
UX Strategy
Communication Design
3D Design
Graphic Design
Copywriting
Community Engagement
Team Coordination
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The EcoStops
The “EcoParadas”, are public Augmented Reality experiences which have the purpose to inform and promote actions to protectnature by connecting with environmentalinstitutions, points of culturalinterest, as well as promoting the local economy.
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The Festival
CyberBalamil Festival, expanded the project into a broader experience, bridging art, nature, and technology. Hosted across various locations the festival offered an interdisciplinary program, fostering dialogue and creative engagement.
Contamination in the river of the SEDEM sport park
Many ecological issues remain invisible in urban spaces, making it difficult for the public to engage with and take action.
Traditional environmental activism often struggles to engage broader audiences beyond those already interested, making participation feel distant or inaccessible.
The two main challenges to tackle:
The challenge
How can augmented reality (AR) be used to foster a deeper connection between people and their environment?
And how do we bring this experience to a broad audience?
Fun fact:
The project was inspired
by my master thesis
THE VISION
Creating an experience where nature, technology, art, and people connect —raising ecological awareness and empowering action.
In essence:
Large-Scale Edutainment
VICFARA Concert. Foto by Luis Entzín
Talk “Doña Digna Conciencia” from Ecosur at Museo de los Altos Chiapas. Foto by Luis Entzín
Kids using CyperTrophy App to Explore the EcoStop in Moxchviquil.
How did all of this take place?
Steps in the creation of the EcoStops
I went with the team personally to check the locations and test the Augmented Reality experience
To create the different EcoStops Sculptures I tuck into consideration the context of the location as well as the cultural context and the cosmology of the region.
After having the platform and the list of institutions involved, I sat together with the different nature protection NGOs and ran a Workshop to identify the different locations where we would place the EcoStops.
The places should take into consideration: internet connection, safety and be close to the city center.
Fotos by Luis Entzín
I also integrated AI into my design process to sketch the idea and then create the 3D Models.
For example: In the SEDEM EcoStop there is an endemic fish called “Tlaloc-Popoyote”. The design of the sculpture aimed at visualising this river guarding combining the endemic fish together with the Mayan deity of the rain “Tlaloc”.
To start with, the project successfully acquired the sponsorship of the creators CyberTrophy to be used as a platform to host the different EcoStops. Meantime a call for participation ran to see which nature protection NGOs wanted to participate in the project.
*If you download the App and search for San Cristobal you will find some of the EcoStops, you can only explore them in AR when being in the place. However you can read the different information I created in collaboration with the NGOs.
This EcoStops were divided in:
- Endangered
- Recovered
- Cultural
- Local Economies: which offered benefits when people showed their recollected sculptures as well as worked
For me it was important to not only show the challenges that the city was facing but to give people hope as well as support the local cultural and economical institutions working for positive impact.
CyberBalamil
Museo de los altos
Come montañas
Espiral
Moxvi
The User Interface Narrative
Below you can see the map with the sculptures, the text with links to the different organizations and the model created by Drones del Sureste.
Note: There were 10 EcoStops. While I created 6 of them and curated the artistic direction, the project recieved the support of Alexander Montes and Drones del Sureste to create the resting sculptures.
Scan to explore the EcoStops scultprues yourself
EcoStops Partners
Steps in the creation of the Festival
The branding
The inaguration
CyberBalamil festival provided a space for different actors to inform, educate, and entertain through diverse cultural and educational offerings, while also introducing the broader public to the digital EcoStop walks.
The bike tours
Make a call for everyone to paricipate
In essence, CyberBalamil Festival and the EcoStops proposed a way through which people experience their city: aiming an at making the invisible, visible as well as inspiring both reflection and action.
Festival Partners
The Impact
The project vision manged to inspire and involved more than 40 participnat, 3 cultural institutions and one oversea sponsor to take part on this quest.
Over the 3 days of the festival more than 400 people tuck part of the project (desipite it rained!)
It managed to bring people together of different ages and backgrounds to work colectively
Did I mentioned we had 2.5 months to create it? From concept to full on digital an physical experience
It created an active community with whom we planning to bring back CyberBalamil 2.0
I am beyond grateful to have had the chance to bring this vision to life and to have met such generous community and dedicate humans who are not only dreamers but makers. I wish for this project to keep growing and inspiring wherever it can spread its roots.
Do you have a similar idea that you need support with? Do you want to explore
how Augmented Reality Storytelling could enrich your product or solution? Are you and NGO that would like to be part of this?
Let’s get started !
Check CyberBalamil IG