Cooperación Santa Ana
A website shaped by values, language, and long-term collaboration.
TL;DR
- Long-term website partnership supporting a nonprofit focused on worker cooperatives
- Multiple platform migrations, ending with a custom WordPress (Divi) build
- Spanish-first website with bilingual access for broader audiences
- Custom interactive features to showcase over 24 cooperatives and resources
Overview
Cooperación Santa Ana is a nonprofit organization based in Santa Ana, California, dedicated to supporting the development of worker cooperatives through training, incubation, and long-term accompaniment. Their work centers Spanish-speaking entrepreneurs and focuses on community wealth building, democratic ownership, and economic justice.
My collaboration with Cooperación Santa Ana spans several years and multiple iterations of their website. Rather than a single build, this project reflects an evolving partnership shaped by changing needs, values, and technical considerations over time.
The Challenge
When we first began working together, Cooperación Santa Ana was using NationBuilder, a platform that made even simple content updates difficult. The team wanted to be able to manage their own site—updating images, editing text, and sharing news—without relying on a developer for every small change.
Accessibility and language were also central concerns. The organization primarily serves Spanish-speaking cooperative members, which meant the website needed to function first and foremost in Spanish, with English as a secondary option.
As the relationship progressed, additional challenges emerged:
- Supporting a growing volume of content (news, resources, and cooperative profiles)
- Ensuring the site worked well across devices
- Aligning technical decisions with the organization’s values
- Creating space to showcase the cooperatives they support in a meaningful, visual way
Goals & Priorities
Across each phase of the project, the core goals remained consistent:
- Make the website easy for staff to update independently
- Ensure the site works well on mobile, tablet, and desktop
- Center Spanish as the primary language while supporting English access
- Keep the design simple, clear, and functional
- Build on tools that align with the organization’s values and long-term sustainability
Approach & Evolution of the Work
Migration from NationBuilder to Wix
To address immediate usability concerns, I first migrated the website from NationBuilder to Wix, preserving the existing structure while refining layouts and creating a few new pages. This allowed the team to regain control over basic content updates and publishing.
Migration from Wix to WordPress
About a year later, Cooperación Santa Ana asked to migrate again—this time away from Wix due to ethical concerns around the platform’s alignment with the war in the region. Wix, an Israeli-founded company with headquarters in Tel Aviv, has shown support for Israel during the Israel-Palestine war. Supporting this decision was important to me, and we moved the site to WordPress, using Divi as the page builder.
WordPress offered greater flexibility, open-source transparency, and stronger long-term customization options. During this migration, we refined the site structure and expanded its functionality.
Solution
The current website is built on WordPress and organized around several core content systems:
- Cooperative Directory: A collection of worker cooperatives, each with its own dedicated page
- News & Updates: A structured way to share announcements and program milestones
- Resource Library: Educational materials covering topics like finance, marketing, conflict resolution, and how to start a cooperative
All content is authored primarily in Spanish, with translation tools in place for English-speaking visitors.
Design-wise, we kept the site intentionally minimal. As Cooperación Santa Ana refreshed their visual identity and introduced new graphics, I applied those updates thoughtfully—integrating them where they supported clarity without overwhelming the content.
Custom Features
One of the most distinctive elements of the site is an interactive honeycomb grid, inspired by a graphic the team wanted to bring to life online. Together, we designed and developed this custom layout to visually represent the cooperatives they’ve supported.
The grid:
- Displays over 24 cooperatives
- Reveals logos and details on hover
- Links to cooperative profiles or social media
- Adapts cleanly across desktop, tablet, and mobile
This feature became both a functional directory and a visual expression of the cooperative network.
Results & Impact
The website now supports Cooperación Santa Ana’s work more effectively by:
- Allowing staff to manage content without technical friction
- Making information accessible to Spanish-speaking audiences first
- Showcasing cooperative members in a way that feels connected and intentional
- Supporting program growth, including recently graduated cooperative cohorts
The site functions as both a public-facing resource and an internal tool the team can rely on.
"Working with Tonatiuh for over three years has been a delight. Beyond his technical skill and reliability, we truly appreciate his straightforwardness. With web design, it can sometimes seem difficult to arrive at a shared vision, balancing what is doable with what is desired. Tonatiuh is excellent at facilitating these conversations, leading to wonderful design work that exceeded our expectations each time. Cooperacion Santa Ana is proud to be a repeat client of Tonatiuh's."
Interested in a values-aligned
website partnership?
If you’re working on something meaningful and need a website that actually supports your work, I’d love to hear about it.