Craftmanship hand in hand with conservation
Craftmanship represents art, skill, tradition, and self-improvement. But in the Peruvian Amazon, it is also an important vehicle for forest conservation and the progress of women who embroider and weave anything they imagine.
For the past 8 years, mothers and women living in and around the Alto Mayo Protected Forest, AMPF, in the northern Peruvian Amazon, have consolidated their Association of Women Entrepreneurs and Defenders of the Alto Mayo Protected Forest, AMEDBAM, which brings together 211 women of the region.
They want to share with the world their designs, the beautiful orchids, hummingbirds and nature from the forest they call home, and on which more than 280,000 people depend on for their water supply. These women receive training and workshops where they improve their technique but also cultivate friendships and share their own experiences, something they also value highly, considering that many live in remote and isolated areas of the forest.
A collaboration with high fashion
Sitka Semsch is a renowned Peruvian designer, ambassador of Peruvian fashion, and the only Latin American to present her collections at the prestigious Russian Fashion Week. But what makes her different is the vision of her designs that go beyond the garments, seeking to rescue and value everything that lies behind a skirt, a pair of trousers or a handbag.
In 2022 Sitka visited the Alto Mayo Protected Forest, met the artisans from the forest, and began a collaboration that is allowing them to position their crafts in the US market, at the Shops at Merrick Park store that Sitka Semsch opened last year in Miami.
Now, women form this corner of the Peruvian amazon are fulfilling one of their dreams; that their work and the natural wealth of the forest that gives them life, is known and valued beyond the Peruvian frontiers.
In addition, they are generating their own income, something that not only makes them proud and gives them economic independence, but also diversifies the family's sources of income, making them stronger.
"We benefit from learning new techniques that are valued by new markets, and now, in our free time, we can weave and produce more," says Laura Díaz, a member of AMEDBAM.
"This is a mutual learning process. We propose designs based on the techniques that the women of AMEDBAM use, and together we innovate. This is the first time in my career that I have incorporated embroidery into our garments, and I am excited to see the results," says Sitka Semsch.
The 71 bracelets in a local palm, and the 12 dresses with embroidery made by the artisans are available at Sitka Semsch’s store in Miami. The artisans hope to continue with this production with the constant advice of Sitka and her team, consolidating and strengthening this collaboration in benefit of the forests and the families that inhabit them.
The result of a joint effort:
These workshops are part of the work carried out by the National Service of Protected Areas of Peru - Sernanp, together with Conservation International Peru, and its partner ECOAN. It is through these activities and partnerships such as the one we have now with Sitka Semsch, that we can encourage healthier and more resilient families, promoting economic alternatives in harmony with the forest.