Casa Criatura: Creating vibrant learning spaces for youth on tech’s impacts

Over a thousand young people from the public schools Sigismundo Gonçalves, Marechal Mascarenhas, and Guedes Alcoforado in Brazil participated in educational experiences on technology and its impacts organized by Casa Criatura, using Tactical Tech resources. Casa Criatura is a lively space of creativity where ideas come to life and innovation thrives. They are masters at transforming underutilized spaces into vibrant environments for urban change, all fueled by the creative economy, local culture, and sustainability. On this occasion, they teamed up with Tactical Tech’s initiatives, including The Glass Room, What the Future Wants, and the Data Detox Kit. The result? A series of interactive activities that had students diving into essential conversations about privacy, digital security, and the role technology plays in their lives.

Picture this: the school corridors transformed into interactive galleries and vibrant spaces of learning! At Guedes Alcoforado, students eagerly explored their screen time, leading to thoughtful conversations about how they spend their free time—balancing study, household chores, and family responsibilities. At Mascarenhas de Moraes, students voiced their feelings of dependence on mobile devices. The thought-provoking content from the What the Future Wants exhibition opened their eyes to the design features that capture their attention, prompting discussions on how to configure their devices to reduce feelings of urgency.

But the collaboration didn’t stop at exhibitions. Casa Criatura also partnered with the What the Future Wants project to localize the Everywhere, All the Time exhibition content on AI impacts into Brazilian Portuguese. This localization process included valuable insights from a teacher and 12 students from a public school in the Peixinhos neighborhood of Olinda. The professor shared that, despite having received some training on the topic, she hadn’t been able to effectively engage students with practical, current examples. “She gave us feedback on how enriching the content of the exhibition will be for the practices and activities that she will develop to work with the students throughout the semester,” said a Casa Criatura team member.