add_action( 'pre_get_posts' , 'my_pre_get_posts' );
function my_pre_get_posts( $query ) {
// Check this is main query and other conditionals as needed
if( $query->is_main_query() ) {
$query->set(
'meta_query',
array(
array(
'key' => 'project_cat',
'value' => 'my-value'
)
)
);
}
}