bru.ma· Edition 01
A 9 day learning journey deep into the Brazilian Amazon for creatives, designers and architects ready to think differently, lead boldly, and create with purpose.
01 · The Forest Experience
Bru.ma is an immersive learning journey for Italian creatives, designers and architects who want to explore how the Amazon's cultural, ecological and territorial intelligence can shape creative processes, strategic thinking and business positioning, ethically and contextually.
With leaders in the Amazon's creative economy, sustainability, design and applied innovation, grounded insights into emerging practices and real world challenges.
Guided coolhunting in context, connecting climate, landscape, production and consumption patterns to strategic vision.
With local communities and artisan creative processes, honoring existing relationships, rhythms and knowledge systems.
On bioeconomy and the creative economy, approached not as abstract trends, but as living fields of experimentation and tangible opportunity.
Bru.ma is not about learning about the Amazon. It is about learning with it.
02 · Executive Seminar
Three online sessions designed to align the group, introduce the cultural and creative context of Brazil and the Amazon, and prepare participants to observe, question and create from a decolonial mindset.
An online session (in Italian) introducing the Brazilian creative context, Amazonian genius loci and the key cultural, economic and territorial frameworks that are reshaping design, architecture and creativity in one of the world's most dynamic regions.
An introduction to decolonial thinking and the cultural frameworks that shape how we design, create and interpret the world. Participants will be invited to suspend familiar assumptions and engage with the Amazon as a source of alternative knowledge, values and futures.
An introduction to the people, places and methodology of the journey, equipping participants with the questions, observational tools and mindset needed to engage deeply with the experience and transform it into lasting creative insight, plus practical information about what to dress and how to be prepared.
03 · Program Flow
A journey through architecture, culture, bioeconomy and ancestral knowledge that expands the way we perceive, create and inhabit the world.
01Day 0
The journey begins before the journey begins.
Arrival in Belém, welcome gathering and first impressions of the Amazon. A soft landing into the rhythm, humidity and hospitality of the gateway city to the forest.
02Day 1
Discovering the Amazon through the city that has always been part of it.
Our journey begins at the Museum of Art of Belém before exploring Ver o Peso Market, the Historic Centre and São José Liberto. Through architecture, gastronomy, biodiversity and creative industries, we uncover an urban Amazon where Indigenous, European and African influences converge, revealing a vibrant cultural landscape that challenges stereotypes and redefines the relationship between city and forest.
03Day 2
Where ancient knowledge continues to shape contemporary creativity.
In Icoaraci, we step inside family ceramic ateliers where Amazonian archaeological traditions continue to shape contemporary craftsmanship. Conversations with artisans and fashion designers reveal how ancestral symbols, local materials and manual techniques inspire today's creative industries, demonstrating that innovation often begins with knowledge that has endured for centuries.
04Day 3
How architecture, innovation and biodiversity become one creative language.
Crossing to Ilha do Combu, we visit the award winning Guá Arquitetura, whose projects reinterpret Amazonian building traditions through ecological design, local craftsmanship and vernacular construction. Later, at the Parque de Bioeconomia, we meet researchers and entrepreneurs developing regenerative solutions inspired by biodiversity, demonstrating how the forest is becoming one of the world's most important laboratories for innovation.
05Day 4
Leaving the city behind to enter another rhythm of life.
We travel from Belém to Alter do Chão, where rivers gradually replace streets and the pace of life follows the rhythm of the Tapajós. As evening falls, the Pirarimbó Experience welcomes us through Amazonian gastronomy, music and storytelling, marking our transition from observing the territory to becoming immersed in its landscapes, cultures and traditions.
06Day 5
Experiencing the forest through relationships.
The day begins with a sunrise practice followed by a traditional cleansing ritual that introduces another way of understanding the territory. Navigating the Canal do Jarí and meeting the guardian of the region's iconic giant water lilies, we discover how culture, spirituality and biodiversity are deeply intertwined, revealing the Amazon as a living network of reciprocal relationships.
07Day 6
Learning how communities and ecosystems evolve together.
Inside the Tapajós National Forest, we are welcomed by the community of Jamaraquá, where we learn about regenerative livelihoods, community based tourism and traditional latex extraction. Walking beneath giant Samaúma trees and spending the night aboard our private boat, we experience the river not simply as landscape, but as teacher, infrastructure and way of life.
08Day 7
Meeting those who have shaped the Amazon for generations.
Welcomed by the Munduruku community of Bragança, we exchange perspectives on territory, craftsmanship, ancestry and Indigenous knowledge. Sharing a community prepared lunch and meaningful conversations offers a rare opportunity to experience the Amazon through those who have cared for it across generations, before gathering once more for our farewell dinner.
09Day 8
What remains will start to be revealed.
As our journey comes to an end, we begin reflecting on everything the Amazon has made visible. More than a destination, it reveals itself as a living source of ideas capable of transforming the way we design, create and inhabit the world. What we take home is not only inspiration, but new questions, relationships and perspectives that will continue unfolding long after we leave.
04 · Highlights
We visit extraordinary places where nature becomes design and lifestyle, meeting the ribeirinhos to understand local craftsmanship, alongside internationally recognised initiatives shaping Amazonian design today.
05 · Brazilian Market Intelligence
From the artisans of Ilha do Combu, who transform the Amazon's materials and symbologies into internationally awarded work, to the stalls of Ver o Peso, where local ingredients are quietly becoming global trends. This immersion teaches one thing above all: the most powerful creative intelligence was already here, long before any trend report.
06 · The Curators
Designer · Cognitive Behaviour & Consumer Researcher · Trend Analyst since 1999
Author of the first Coolhunting manual in Portuguese, TEDx speaker, Guest Professor at PUC PR, Unisinos and ESPM. Since 2008 leads Studio Fah Maioli in Milan, the world's only Metatrends Observatory on Lifestyle, Wellness and Consumer Behaviour. Creator of the Metatrends Methodology, developed alongside Li Edelkoort, Francesco Morace, Umberto Eco, Elio Fiorucci and Domenico de Masi.
Futurist · Sustainability & Regeneration Specialist · Business & Brand Strategist
22 years of executive experience across multinationals (Hewlett Packard, Luxottica), leading teams in 17 countries. Guest Professor at Politecnico di Milano, certified in Regenerative Economics by Schumacher School (UK) and in Futures Thinking at the Institute for the Future (Palo Alto).
Journalist · Editorial & Audiovisual Production · Cultural Guide
Brazilian journalist with over 30 years of experience in architecture, design and culture, including Folha de S. Paulo, Casa Vogue, Trip Editora, UOL and FLO Magazine. Based in Italy since 2017, she covers major international events and interviews leading figures, combining research, refined storytelling and curatorial vision.
07 · Investment
Shared accommodation
Private accommodation
Payable in two installments. All payments are processed by our international travel agency partner by credit card or bank transfer.
Flight not included
International flights are not included. Estimated cost for a Milan Belém return ticket is around €1.000. You can book independently or purchase it through Focus Travel Agency, the agency operating this pack.
* Prices valid until 30/11/26
Program fee prices are valid for payments completed until 30/11/26. After this date, prices for accommodation, the internal flight and transportation, as well as experiences, may increase.
Included in the price
Total included meals: 4 lunches and 4 dinners.
08 · FAQ
This is a curated professional experience designed to provide direct access to Amazonian architecture, local expertise and projects that are rarely accessible through traditional tourism or academic travel.
A pioneering architecture coolhunting experience in the Amazon, combining exclusive site visits, local expertise and insights unavailable through conventional study tours.
Yes. Three days are dedicated to focused coolhunting inside the forest and along the Amazon River, guided by local voices, artisans and researchers.
All payments are processed through Focus Travel Agency, the international travel agency operating this pack, and made directly to the program organizer. A formal agreement outlining services, terms and payment conditions is provided. Flight tickets can also be purchased through Focus Travel Agency if desired.
Cancellation terms are clearly stated in the agreement. We strongly recommend travel insurance to cover unforeseen events and medical emergencies.
Yes. Any operational changes will be communicated in advance and handled according to the agreed terms.
