Cultivating Preservation, Entrepreneurship & Digitalization
through Artisan Partnerships in Central & South America
Preservation
It is essential to empower artisan communities by creating sustainable job opportunities for them to continue practicing their ancestral craft. Indigenous artisan craftsmanship, like weaving and hat-making, is vanishing and at risk of extinction because of the lack of income opportunities and modernization. Mayu Mission is helping to bridge the gap between remote artisan villages and global communities by giving them the resources, skills training and job opportunities required to keep their generational artistry alive and flourishing.
Digitalization
Through our partnerships, we bring digital technology to rural communities in Central and South America. Historically, many indigenous communities have had their knowledge exploited by outsiders without their consent. This digital transformation helps drive innovation and connects artisan communities to modern day global marketplaces. Our programs secure intellectual property rights for artisans, not only to protect and preserve their art forms, but also to create income opportunities through digital royalties and modern day marketplaces.
Entrepreneurship
Our programs empower artisans, particularly women, to be entrepreneurs and successfully run their own businesses. In Peru, over 60% of jobs are informal, creating instability and opportunity for exploitation. Through our workshops, we are providing valuable life skills, self- confidence, and resources to create and manage independent businesses. In many rural communities where domestic violence and anti-feminism exists, it is vital to provide women with resources and support, so that they can make their own independent choices for themselves.
Huacahuasi Textile Trade School
Partnered with Yanapana Peru and Mountain Lodges of Peru, this project’s purpose is to reduce the condition of extreme poverty in the Andean Highlands, improving the quality of life through sustainable community development. The program creates a positive path for sustainable development through humanitarian, cultural, and social income-generating projects and by focusing on educational and health-oriented needs to create a "happier way of life". The partnership goal is to develop a textile weaving program in rural Huacahuasi, to bring weaving back as a trade program. In an effort to preserve this ancient weaving tradition, a trade certification program will help legitimize weaving as a viable career and skillset, to then serve as the base for sustainable income opportunities.
$30,000 is needed to develop this program in 2026.
Ollantaytambo Women Build Community Center
We’ve partnered with non-profit, Awamaki to expand market access in the Andes. Awamaki creates lasting impact in the remote Andean mountains of Peru by collaborating with women’s cooperatives to build successful businesses in cultural tourism and handwoven fair trade textiles.
Women Build is our transformative capital campaign that will establish a new Artisan Center in Ollantaytambo, Peru. The center’s accessible location will allow more Indigenous women to participate in Awamaki's economic development programs, even if they live very far from the tourism market. Artisan crafts in this area are what National Geographic refers to a “vanishing art”; an ancient weaving or embroidering tradition that has been passed down through the centuries by the women in their culture. We’re working toward a textile and hat preservation library to be added into the center, where Artisans can educate visitors about their culture and generational craft.
$550,000 is needed to build and run the community center by 2026.
Monthly Entrepreneurial Women’s Circle in Lima, Peru
Our partnership with Peruvian non-profit Nexos Comunitarios funds monthly women’s circle workshops in San Juan de Lurigancho, one of Lima’s most impoverished areas. Through our monthly women's circles, this initiative empowers women by providing a holistic approach to personal and economic growth. The circles not only nurture women's entrepreneurial skills but also offer invaluable soft skills training, fostering confidence and self-esteem.
Beyond economic empowerment, the project serves as a platform for the women to voice their community's challenges, enabling them to collectively strategize solutions. Each month, a new theme and workshop open doors to sustainable income opportunities, and a sense of solidarity among community, ensuring that these remarkable women are thriving in the face of adversity. This initiative represents a powerful force for change, lifting women in Lima towards a brighter and more prosperous future.
$5,600 is needed to fund this project for one year.
Help Support our Programs.
We hope you will consider joining us in supporting our programs at Mayu Mission. Together, we can co-create a vision of sustainable, positive impact for the individuals benefiting from our initiatives. Whether through single or multi-year pledges, corporate sponsorships, or any other means of philanthropy, your support is invaluable and warmly welcomed.
