Guillermo Bernal is the Executive Director of The Place Institute and a global leader in Placemaking. He is an active Board Member of PlacemakingX.

Guillermo has over a decade of experience transforming public spaces in Mexico and Latin America. As the Founding Director of Fundación Placemaking México, he has spearheaded over 500 projects, demonstrating that love, sustainability, and participation are tangible forces that reshape communities. He believes that public spaces are the soul of a community and can democratize cities through inclusive, vibrant places. At The Place Institute, he leads initiatives that foster regenerative, community-driven impact worldwide, ensuring every project empowers local voices and inspires lasting change. 

As a Board Member of PlacemakingX, Guillermo builds strategic partnerships to expand the Placemaking movement globally. His passion for storytelling led him to direct and produce The Place Man (2024), a documentary honoring Fred Kent’s legacy. Guillermo is driven by a clear purpose: to build resilient communities through practical, replicable strategies that inspire collective action and transformation.

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Guillermo graduated with great distinction from the Master in Urban Studies program 4 Cities—Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Brussels), Universität Wien (Vienna), Københavns Universitet (Copenhagen), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Madrid), and Universidad Complutense de Madrid (Madrid)—in 2013.

In 2014, Guillermo founded Lugares Publicos, a Mexican nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing participatory planning, workshops, and activation in public spaces. This initiative quickly gained momentum, catalyzing positive change in communities across Mexico.

Two years later, Guillermo's commitment to placemaking earned him recognition and support from Project for Public Spaces (PPS). As a grantee of PPS, he implemented their Heart of the Community Program in Mexico City. During this period, he became a fellow of Project for Public Spaces. This role allowed him to share his expertise and insights through numerous trainings in countries spanning Latin America, the United States, the United Arab Emirates, the Netherlands, China, Chile, and Colombia. His global perspective on placemaking began to take shape.

In 2018, Guillermo organized the second Placemaking Week Latin America, which saw 400 practitioners in public spaces gather in Mexico City to reflect and take action on how public spaces should be shaped in the region. Download the White Book from the Week here (Spanish)

In early 2019, Guillermo joined the startup team at PlacemakingX, a pivotal moment that would further elevate his influence in the placemaking movement. He became a Board Member and emerged as a global keynote speaker, sharing insights across Latin America, North America, Europe, and India about the importance of adopting an ecosystem approach to transform public spaces through placemaking.

Late 2019 marked a milestone in Guillermo's journey when he founded The Placemaking Mexico Foundation. This endeavor aimed to create programs supporting a network of Mexican organizations and movements dedicated to community-driven placemaking. As Executive Director, Guillermo oversaw the foundation's efforts, substantially impacting 500 communities throughout Mexico. Notable achievements include transforming 150 public spaces donated by the Coca-Cola Foundation and its Mexican bottlers and creating 50 child-friendly places supported by the FEMSA Foundation. These initiatives reflect Guillermo's unwavering dedication to improving the quality of life in his homeland and beyond.

In 2023, Guillermo took the role of Global Program Director, intending to orchestrate groundbreaking initiatives such as the first-ever Global Placemaking Summit and the Placemaking Agenda Papers. These initiatives have significantly impacted the placemaking movement, setting the stage for global transformation.

In 2024, Guillermo founded The Place Institute, an international organization that supports regenerative, community-driven impact globally. The Place Institute operates through project funding, technical support, collaboration, best practices, and its own networks, empowering local voices and fostering vibrant, inclusive places worldwide. Guillermo leads its global initiatives, securing international partnerships with foundations, companies, governments, and organizations to drive transformative placemaking programs.

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Test a broad range of programming ideas; some ideas will work some will not. The important part of Placemaking is the process, not the result. Creating a successful place is more about feeling than a technique, but be methodical and have principles.