Our Programs
The Nutrition and Education program was created in 2021 out of the need to feed and educate Shipibo Konibo children who did not receive any formal education from 2020 to 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
As children have returned to school, we continue to fulfill the need for providing a nutritious meal. However, we shift our focus to cultural education to strengthen and preserve Shipibo Konibo identity, which is currently at risk of being lost. Our program will enlist elders from the community to share ancestral knowledge and stories, and teach skills unique to our culture.
Your support for a supplementary nutrition and education program for Shipibo Konibo youth is an investment in the persistence and vitality of our community. We ask that you join us in safeguarding our rich cultural heritage for future generations.
Nutrition & Education
Marketplace for Women Artisans
The Shipibo Konibo have thrived for centuries nourished by the Ucayali River and the surrounding forests which nurtured a profound connection with their natural environment. This connection is expressed through our unique designs known as kené, a complex pattern language conveying ancestral knowledge that is musical as well as visual. These designs are painted on textiles, ceramics, wood carvings and beaded into jewelry, and in ancient times, on the human body to heal and empower.
These artworks serve as vessels for storytelling, describing the geography, cosmology, spiritual and daily life of the Shipibo Konibo. The kené serve not only as aesthetic expressions but also as records of our cultural heritage, traditionally passed on through women from mother to daughter.
The online marketplace is a bridge connecting our worlds through art and cultural exchange.
In an effort to address the pressing challenge of inadequate nutritional access and to ensure a sustainable future for the Shipibo Konibo community, we are excited to launch the first in a series of future food security projects. These projects aim to guarantee that the community's nutritional needs are sufficiently met, in an environment that has shifted from self-sufficiency to dependency, while adapting to climate challenges.
We will embark on a three-fold approach.
The construction of a communal fishpond
The cultivation of diverse food crop plots on communal land
The creation of a fund for food security projects proposed by community members, providing educational or technical support to ensure success
Together, we can empower the community and ensure a healthier and more prosperous future for all.