How Lima's Circus Grey Created Readable Sidewalks for Visually-Impaired People

This open-source project could benefit millions worldwide

The brief from Peruvian cement company Cemento Sol was simple yet challenging: Demonstrate how cement can play a role in building more inclusive cities.

And Lima’s Circus Grey, in consultation with Grey’s global creative council, rose to the challenge. The team devised “Sightwalks,” transforming the sidewalks in Lima’s Miraflores district by carving numbered lines into concrete that visually-impaired people can read with their walking sticks. These lines not only identify businesses but let passerby know if there are banks, pharmacies, hospitals and even bus stops nearby.

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Here, Circus Grey creative chairman and CEO José Rivera y Piérola discusses the research behind “Sightwalks,” which won multiple Grands at last night’s Clio Health Awards in New York.

MUSE: Before you launched this effort, what kind of research did you do, and what did you learn?

José Rivera y Piérola: We worked in collaboration with the three largest associations for the visually-impaired in Peru. With them, we defined the most relevant venues to put on “Sightwalks.” They also were involved in the design process with the team of industrial designers. It was a trial-and-error process.

We are constantly hearing about high-tech breakthroughs—AI, etc. But these tiles are physical, and they serve people out and about in a city. My biggest take-way: We need to make sure we are paying more attention to making life in the real world better for everyone.

Absolutely agree. In Latin America and in countries around the world, there’s a significant lack of urban infrastructure. That’s why we’re thrilled that such a simple and easy-to-implement idea is having so much success.

What was the biggest challenge in creating “Sightwalks,” and how did you and your team overcome such issues?

The biggest challenge was the time it took to develop the tiles and the paperwork that we had to do working with the government. We had to go through two mayors to be able to implement “Sightwalks.” We had to be very persistent to avoid getting discouraged.

What did you and your team learn while bringing the work to life?

First, you have to know that at some point you are going to fail, and you have to encourage yourself and start again. Second thing is to let the ideas mature and grow. Let the idea take the time it needs to become a robust idea. And finally, build the best team around your idea that includes your client.

What’s next for “Sightwalks”?

We are in conversations with different organizations to implement the project potentially in the U.S., Europe and Japan. For us, that would be the greatest prize of all—seeing it help more people around the world.