Support Indigenous Women's Cooperatives

Awamaki is a Peruvian and a U.S. 501(c)(3) non-profit organization working to promote community development in Ollantaytambo, Cusco, Peru. Awamaki works to provide the skills, training, and access to market necessary for women and rural families to earn an income to lift themselves out of poverty. Our programs include fair trade women's crafts cooperatives, sustainable tourism and community education. For more information, see http://awamaki.org/about/.

Interning with Awamaki is a valuable experience for anyone interested in a career in international development or social enterprise. We rely on interns' fresh ideas and skillset to constantly improve and expand our programs, and in return, we give our interns a high level of autonomy and responsibility over their individual projects. Because of this, interns are required to commit to a minimum of 3 months.

• Those interested in volunteering for less than three months, please check out our Service Travel program, designed for volunteers staying 3 weeks or more: http://awamaki.org/volunteer/service-travel/

General Requirements for Volunteering with Awamaki:

• Intermediate/Advanced/Fluent Spanish, or pre-registration in intensive Spanish courses at our language center to improve your proficiency.
• 3 – 6 month commitment
• Work at least 30 – 35 hours per week during their placement, including a minimum of 9-12 hours per week staffing Awamaki's Fair trade store in Ollantaytambo.
• Enthusiasm, resourcefulness and the ability to think on one's feet.
• Organized, efficient, and dedicated.
• Team player, sociable, excellent customer service skills.
• Adaptable and flexible to be able to work in an often-challenging environment.
• Must be able to take the initiative.

Awamaki is seeking a Women's Cooperatives Volunteer

Through the Women's Cooperatives Program, Awamaki aims to conserve and revitalize the Andean traditions of weaving, knitting and spinning by finding a market for hand-made textiles in an economy which is fast modernizing (and where the value of textiles is losing relevance). In doing so we are helping to empower indigenous women weavers and create the opportunity for them to achieve a higher degree of financial independence. With this vision, Awamaki sees rural, indigenous women as no longer marginalized and disadvantaged; rather they will be empowered to participate in the modern economy, recognizing the value of their Quechua heritage as a vehicle to do so.

We organize women's artisan cooperatives, provide skills-building workshops (in spinning, weaving, knitting and sewing) and provide access to the market through our Fair Trade Store in town, thereby allowing women to earn a reliable income. Through Awamaki Lab, the product development arm of the Women's Artisanal Cooperatives Program, we aim to bridge the gap between weavers and the international market, using fashion and design skills to appeal to an international consumer base. Ultimately we hope to phase out Awamki's presence as an intermediary in 10 years time by equipping Quechua women with the capacity to appraise the value of their textiles and connect directly to a consumer market.

Volunteers in Awamaki's Artisan Cooperatives program have the unique opportunity to participate in all aspects of developing and brining a product to market and work directly with the artisans producing the products. Interns are given a project to focus on for the duration of their stay with regard to their interests, individual skill set, and the current needs of the organization. Interns receive a timeline and are expected to meet deadlines and turn in a completed project while balancing day-to-day needs in the office and in artisan communities. Project examples include: Product design and development, technical design, production assistance, teaching of new skills eg. patternmaking, advanced knitting, pattern reading, creation of sales and marketing materials.

Awamaki produces product only for the Fall/Winter selling season, therefore final samples must be completed not later than December. The schedule is as follows:

Jan-Oct: Market research, product design & development, technical design, sample making

Feb-Aug: Production of current season products: Placing and receiving orders from artisan groups, quality control, one-on-one guidance with production patterns, packaging and shipping, inventory

April-Aug: National sales including reaching out and visiting stores in the Cusco region, management assistance, merchandising and PR for the local Awamaki Fair-Trade store, documentation of the design and production process.

Aug-Jan: Creation of sales materials including line sheets, product photos, lookbooks, PR, researching local and international sales venues, managing overseas trunk-show materials and inventory

Year-round: Assistance with on-going skills building workshops, sales & merchandising at the Awamaki Fair-Trade store, one-on-one guidance for members of the knitting cooperative

Women's Cooperatives Program Responsibilities and Potential Projects

Product Development

• Get involved with the sourcing, development, and creation of focused and saleable product pieces.
• Create tech packs in Spanish and product samples
• Work side-by-side with members of our sewing, knitting, spinning and weaving associations to produce final samples of garments and accessories that valorize the woven textile and craft traditions native to the Sacred Valley.

Production

• Support Awamaki staff and co-op members to fulfill orders by creating clear and simple tech packs and teaching them to the artisans.
• Assist with communication and production of custom orders; communicate designs and quality standards to artisans
• Asses quality of finished woven, sewn, knit, and spun product
• Process and ship orders

Marketing and Communications

Sales

• Generate sales strategies and forecasts, product design & research
• Create sales materials for local, international and trunk-show use including line sheets, email and print materials.
• Take product photos and create publicity materials,
• Seek out and communicate with stores nationally and internationally
• Visually document the design process, blogging and tweeting about experiences to engage viewers in the storytelling of how artisans and visiting designers share ideas and create goods.

Requirements for working with the Awamaki Women's Cooperatives Program

• General requirements: 2 years of completed study or 1 year work experience in relevant field, Microsoft Excel and Office, Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, photography experience desired. Strong creativity, flexibility, communication, and organization skills a must.
• Design & Product Development: Able to design within the Awamaki aesthetic. Demonstrated follow-through and ability to complete full techpacks and finished samples
• Production: Patience and ability to explain complex production techniques in the areas of knitting, sewing, and/or spinning. Demonstrated reliability, effective planning, and ability to meet deadlines.
• Sales: Able to create sales materials to send to clients, use in the fair-trade store, and at trunk shows. Comfortable communicating with clients over email and in person. Ability to identify Awamaki's demographic and seek out potential sales venues and opportunities. Strong communication and computer skills.

Program Costs

The current Awamaki volunteer fee for 3-month and 6-month volunteers is a one-time payment made prior to arrival of $1,392. Because Awamaki is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in the United States, most of this ($820) is considered a donation and is tax-deductible in the United States to the extent allowed by law.

As recognition of the value and importance of long-term volunteers, $700 is refunded upon completion of 6 months as an Awamaki volunteer.

The volunteer fee includes the following costs:

• Program donation fee($500 USD)This fee provides essential support for Awamaki's programs that serve the cooperatives and the community. $100 of your program donation covers any materials that volunteers may use for individual projects during their stay. The remaining balance of approximately $400 directly supports Awamaki's programs.
• Administration Fee ($320 USD)This fee compensates many of Awamaki's behind-the-scenes costs of hosting volunteers from internet bills to staff costs so that we can maintain services to enrich the volunteering and cultural immersion experience.
• Three night weaving immersion workshop in Patacancha ($200 USD) This four-day / three-night workshop in the indigenous Quechua community of Patacancha allows volunteers an irreplaceable cultural immersion experience as they learn ancestral weaving techniques from expert weavers.
• First month of homestay in Ollantaytambo ($300 USD) This fee goes directly to a local homestay family in Ollantaytambo and covers a private room in the family's house and 3 meals per day while providing an extra source of income for the family.
• Volunteer welcome and departure ($72 USD) This fee covers the cost of welcome events, departure gifts, and a pick-up from the Cusco airport