To choose otherwise is to walk the edges of dominant systems and design anew.
A 7 days Immersion trip with Francesca Zampollo
In a world that feels increasingly confusing, fast, and often harsh, it is our responsibility, as human beings, as creatives, Designers, entrepreneurs, to take matters into our own hands. To choose differently.
An Immersion is more than a retreat. More than a trip. It’s a week of slowing down to absorb, observe, and learn from our surroundings, from people who’ve chosen otherwise, and from each other. It’s a space to be reshaped, and to gather tools you can carry back into your own practice.
OCT 1-7 2025
Rio de Janeiro
CHAPTER 1
OCT 1-7 2025
Rio de Janeiro because it pulses with contradiction and possibility. It’s a place where joy and struggle live side by side, where grassroots movements and creative resistance are deeply alive. The city’s social fabric, culinary traditions, and emergent food systems offer the perfect ground to explore what it means to choose otherwise: to Design with care, courage, and commitment. Here, relationships to land, labour, and culture are being reimagined in powerful, embodied ways.This will only be the first chapter. Francesca is already dreaming up the next Choosing Otherwise Immersions in places like Italy, Colombia, New Zealand, Jordan, and Portugal. Each chapter will be unique not only in location but also in content and approach.
topics we'll immerse in
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Regenerative Agriculture
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Agroecology
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Local Food Systems
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Food Culture and Biodiversity
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Agroforestry
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Circular Economies
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Care-based Economies
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Social Gastronomy
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Community Sovereignty
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Social Inclusion through Design
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Feminist and Decolonial Design Practices
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Design Activism
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Spiritual Sustainability
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Slow Making
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System Design
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Systems Thinking
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Land-based Learning
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Embodied and Experiential Learning
where we'll go
Rio de Janeiro
THREE NIGHTS
São José do Barreiro
VISIT
Catuçaba
TWO NIGHTS
Paraty
ONE NIGHT
and back to Rio
what we will experience
design labs
WORKSHOPS
Design Labs are hands-on workshops where theory meets practice. Participants engage in experiential learning, using Design methods and tools to tackle real-world challenges. These labs are intentionally action-oriented, translating abstract ideas into tangible outcomes, and giving participants the chance to practise principles of Design while learning by doing.
explorations
VISITS
Explorations involve visits to businesses already embracing alternative ways of working. Through these immersive experiences, participants learn by observing and drawing inspiration from others who are actively choosing otherwise. It’s an opportunity to see in action what’s possible when different approaches are adopted.
places we'll experience
We'll visit places and talk to people who are already choosing otherwise.
Some of these include:
Namah Social: sewing, reintegration, and transformation through fashion.
Mercado São José: local food, culture, and community curated by Junta Local. We'll visit three businesses here.
The Slow Bakery: natural fermentation, local sourcing, and fair food culture in Rio.
Gastromotiva: culinary education, social gastronomy, and food as a tool for inclusion. We'll have lunch and a shared learning activity.
Junta Local: community-driven markets, local food, and collective belonging.
Maravilhas São José: agroecology, food heritage, and forest restoration led by Alice Lutz. We'll spend an afternoon at Alice's farm, with workshops and lunch.
Lano Alto: raw milk dairy, agroforestry, and slow living in the Serra do Mar. We'll spend two days at Lano Alto, to slow down in nature and to find our connection.
Caminhos do Ouro: ancestral agroforestry and chocolate rooted in the Atlantic Forest. We'll reach Paraty, where we'll spend one night, and visit a cacao farm which supplies beans to producers focused on local chain and racial equity. Includes workshop and lunch.
Fazenda Bananal: Atlantic Forest immersion, conservation, and connection to local culture. On our way back to Rio from Paraty, we'll stop at Fazenda Bananal where we'll spend a few hours for workshops and lunch.
design labs
The Design Labs are ideated and facilitated by Francesca with the intention of channeling the “how to” attributes of her Design methodology into the various topics that will be explored, creating a curriculum that stimulates with insights and vision-broadening perspectives while providing hands-on tools to help people design by choosing otherwise. Participants will experience and take home actionable tools and Design methods to use in their own creative practice, whatever the outcome.
Here are three of the Design Labs:
spirituality
in design
Spirituality in Design is not an added layer, but a return to its core: making intentional, reasoned choices aligned with how we want to live in relationship with others and the world. This Design Lab offers tools to bring that awareness into key moments of the Design process.
system
thinking
This Design Lab introduces systems thinking and system Design as tools to map complexity, reveal interconnections, and identify opportunities for meaningful intervention. Participants will practice hands-on methods to create outcomes that support long-term regeneration and shift from linear to holistic ways of designing.
design
activism
This Design Lab on Design Activism invites participants to explore making as a form of questioning, revealing, and proposing. Through hands-on work and collective reflection, we’ll develop early concepts for interventions that challenge dominant narratives and support care, equity, and community-driven change. Read Francesca's paper "Principles of Design Activism".
Day 1 - OCT 1
Rio de Janeiro
welcome
design lab
shared learning
Day 4 - OCT 4
São José do Barreiro
1 visits
design lab
shared learning and arrival at Catuçaba
Day 7 - OCT 7
Paraty
1 visits
design lab
shared learning
back to Rio
Day 2 - OCT 2
Rio de Janeiro
design lab
4 visits
shared learning
Day 5 - OCT 5
Catuçaba
design lab
shared learning
and shared cooking
Day 3 - OCT 3
Rio de Janeiro
design lab
2 visits
shared learning and sunset at Copacabana
Day 6 - OCT 6
Paraty
1 visits
design lab
shared learning
arrival in Paraty
dinner at the beach
about 9,385 BRL
fees: 1444 €
includes:
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all design labs
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all explorations
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immersion booklet
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three nights accommodation (Oct 4, Oct 5, Oct 6)
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six lunches (Oct 2 - Oct 7)
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three dinners (Oct 4, Oct 5, Oct 6)
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three breakfasts (Oct 5, Oct 6, Oct 7)
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all transportation within the immersion
does not include:
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flights to and from Rio de Janeiro
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three nights accommodation in Rio de Janeiro (Oct 1, Oct 2, Oct 3)
Choosing Otherwise is a project by Francesca Zampollo.
This Immersion Chapter in Rio de Janeiro is the result of a collaboration between:
DR. FRANCESCA ZAMPOLLO
DR. ELLEN GONZALEZ
MARIANA MEDEIROS
Mariana Medeiros is an architect, confectioner, and gastronomic consultant focused on developing food ecosystems and supporting small producers. She has experience in building communities that strengthen short, local and ethical food chains. Driven by the passion for knowing stories and connecting people, she sees food as the guiding thread – from conversations to every bite and sip shared at the table.
Francesca is a researcher, teacher, consultant, coach, and facilitator in Design Theory specialising in Design methodologies for meaning-driven projects. She enjoys listening to (and facilitating) people's stories, immersing in nature, canyons and waterfalls. And pizza.
Ellen Gonzalez is a cook, gastronomic consultant, and Food Design researcher, with a systemic perspective of ethics and sustainability. A perpetual traveler, she's lived on all continents, feeding her belly, mind and soul with a taste for local diversity. 15 years ago, she picked Rio as her home, and has not regretted a single day.
have questions?
want to meet the team?
join our INFO SESSION
it's free of course ;)
JULY 24
4pm UTC+2