Ana María Serna Botero The progressive disappearance of Indigenous languages is not only a threat to linguistic diversity, but also to the cultural self-determination of native peoples. In this talk, Ana María Serna Botero will present Marãɗe, a digital typeface designed to support the revitalization of the Embera Katío language in Colombia.
Developed through a university-community partnership, Marãɗe integrates ethnographic fieldwork, native speaker collaboration, and design research to create a culturally rooted, technically functional tool. The typeface reflects the phonetic and visual particularities of the language, incorporating custom characters and design decisions informed by Embera aesthetics-such as body painting, woven jewelry (okamas), and traditional dress.
Maräde addresses the lack of typographic representation in digital and educational environments by offering a typeface optimized for low-resolution reproduction-essential for Indigenous schools-and built with high readability in mind. This project stands as an example of how design can foster inclusion, cultural preservation, and educational equity.