This article presents notes resulting from qualitative research with a participatory approach, carried out in person and remotely with a group of young people from the Terra Firme neighborhood, in Belém-Pará, northern Brazil. The aim was to analyze how the engagement of designers in emancipation processes managed by socially oppressed groups can promote transformations in the practices of designers in participatory projects. The theoretical foundation is based on the Latin American critical thinking of authors such as Paulo Freire and Orlando Fals Borda, demonstrating how their legacy influenced designers in participatory projects. The theoretical framework and qualitative research allowed us to consider that the engagement of designers in popular struggles not only influences the change in the scope of projects, but also allows solidarity to emerge as their main element.