Send Martha and Mercedes to visit the U.S.

Thanks to your generous donations, our goal of sending Martha and Mercedes to represent Awamaki at the panel discussion at the Textile Society of America’s 2016 Symposium in Savannah,Georgiais possible. Martha and Mercedes are busy applying for passports and filling out their visa applications.

 As the behind-the-scenes powerhouses at Awamaki, it is difficult to pin down these important leaders for a spare moment as they whiz through the office in between their busy schedules. They can often be found in the Awamaki office surrounded by local artisans, leading quality control meetings with the various cooperatives, or even supervising lunch for volunteer groups as they help construct new crafts facilities. 

"Martha and Mercedes aren’t the public faces of Awamaki, so they aren’t the ones getting accolades for what they do. They are the engine,” said Kennedy Leavens, Executive Director of Awamaki. 

At the conference in Georgia, however, Martha and Mercedes will be able to take time away from their mountain of daily responsibilities to share their work with a broader audience.  They will share their experiences, connect with other respected artisans, and learn about fair trade. Kennedy hopes that physically seeing the quality of other products in the market will inspire Martha and Mercedes to use their leadership skills to urge the women working with Awamaki to create the best possible product.

"This trip is important to let people know what we do in Peru—[Peru] is not just Machu Picchu,” said Mercedes when asked about the goals she has for her time in the United States. By leading a panel discussion at the symposium, Martha and Mercedes will share what makes the artisans in the region around Ollantaytambo so special, and the ways in which Awamaki aims to promote Peruvian culture.

The experience will give Martha and Mercedes a new perspective to their work at Awamaki. One of Mercedes' goals for the trip is "to understand how each unique artisan respects a culture’s identity and way of life through their work.” She aims to bring back the techniques of other respected artisans to use here at Awamaki. Mercedes hopes that this trip will support Awamaki’s goal of preserving the women’s cultural identity within their work, while at the same time improving the cooperatives’ business tactics in order to increase the women’s income and quality of life.

Like Mercedes, Martha hopes to learn how to better carry out business at the conference and share her knowledge with the women back home in Peru. “We will never have the same experience of meeting different artisans from around the world,” said Martha when talking about the importance of the symposium. More than anything, Martha looks forward to connecting with local businesses in the region in order to spread the image of Awamaki and increase the client base of the cooperatives.

Thank you so much for making this trip possible for Martha and Mercedes. We are looking forward to keeping you updated in the coming months!