EntreprenEUrship for CultYOUre Job Shadowing Report Lima, PERU - Nov. 2018
Host Organisation: Brigada de Voluntarios Bolivarianos del Peru
Youth Workers: Margaux Dos Santos - Youth Express Network - France Deivydas ÄŒepas - Active Youth - Lithuania
Context This job shadowing was organised in the frame of the Capacity Building project (KA2) “EntreprEUnership for CultYOUre” coordinated by Youth Express Network, and developed with 7 partner organisaKons from 7 different countries: ABS - AcKve Bulgarian Society (Bulgaria) AcKve Youth (Lithuania) BIC - Business & InnovaKon Centre of Serres (Greece) IIC-MX - IniciaKvas Internacionales para la Cooperación Mexico (Mexico) CSDS - Centre for Sustainable Development Studies (Vietnam) Brigada de Voluntarios Bolivarianos de Peru (Peru) Fundación SES - Sustentabilidad, Educación y Solidaridad (ArgenKna) This project is financially supported by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union.
Report jointly wri_en by Margaux Dos Santos (Youth Express Network) and Deivydas Čepas (AcKve Youth). It does not represent the official point of view of any of the partner organisaKons nor the financial supporter.
TESTIMONY: MARGAUX 30th Oct. to 20th Nov. 2018
Flying to Peru in the frame of the EU4YOU project was a once-in-a-lifeKme opportunity. I had never been outside of Europe before this experience and I am grateful for everything this job shadowing allowed me to discover: a beauKful country, the kindest of people and promising innovaKve iniKaKves. We were lucky to be shown the many faces of Peru. We visited museums and got to learn about Peru’s history, from its ancient civilisaKons, to the most recent terrorism and internal conflicts. We discovered Peru’s tradiKons and its diversity in culture and people. We saw the a_achment of the people to their history, idenKty and tradiKon, and how they manage to preserve their past, transmit it to the new generaKons, respecKng it and including it in everything they do. We got to know the center and dynamic district of the capital city, but were also lucky enough to be invited in the surrounding districts, less known and more challenged. We went out of the ciKes, spend a few days in the mountains and the jungle! We met indigenous communiKes, university students, remote rural families, taxi drivers, teachers, pharmacists, waiters… All of whom welcomed us. What struck me the most during this experience was the people, their kindness, generosity, their love for their country and their enthusiasm to make it known to the outside world. I was equally amazed to see how the will of a few, without much financial resources, can bring a whole community to a safer and more equal place. I will always remember my Kme in Peru and will keep in touch with the friends I made there, hoping to witness the fruits of the organisaKons’ work through the next years.
TESTIMONY: DEIVYDAS 5th to 26th Nov. 2018
Wonderful possibility provided by EU4YOU project!!! Due to this opportunity I had a chance to explore both beauKful Peruvian culture and local entrepreneurship iniKaKves as well. On the same day when I flew out of Lithuania to Peru I was happy, excited and worried to leave. For the first Kme in my life, I have lej Europe and traveled to a completely different conKnent. Moreover, I was Kred and misled by all the blogs describing the country as full of poverty and animals that stray free in the suburbs of the city. Although this visit proved me wrong and gave me a chance to experience great hospitality of Peruvian people. Therefore, I will conKnue these adventures and gain some new knowledge that could be shared with all of you! Time spent in Peru gave me a chance to collect amazing examples and pracKces which encourages young people to promote social entrepreneurship. You can read more about this iniKaKve in this arKcle and in the provided link: www.culturalentrepreneurship.info
SPECIAL THANKS We would like to thank our host organisaKon, the Brigada de Voluntarios Bolivarianos del Peru and its volunteers: Jorge, Willy, Carlos and many others, for showing us the many faces of their beauKful country, its history, marvelous territory and its generous people. We would like to thank Percy and Luis, the founders of the two main structures we visited. Thank you for warmly inviKng us in your organisaKons and showing us the great work that is done by you and your volunteers. Your moKvaKon and selessness was impressive and we lej inspired by your dedicaKon to contribute, at your own scale, to build a be_er place for your local communiKes and the future generaKons.
INITIATIVE #1 : « LA NUEVA SEMILLA » The first initiative we got to visit was the Cultural Research and Advocacy Center « La Nueva Semilla » (The New Seed). This nonprofit organisation is located in the district of Villa Maria del Triunfo, one of the districts of Lima, capital city of Peru. Founded in 1998 at the initiative of its director Percy Vergara Mendivil, this organisation aims at ensuring a safe-space for the children, teenagers and young adults of the district and its surrounding areas. Using art and culture, « La Nueva Semilla » provides hundreds of young people with a space and opportunities to dedicate their free time to learn, create and grow up in a safe community. There, they can be young, far from their local issues: delinquency, drugs, alcohol, gangs, domestic violence and family problems... In the 3-room space Percy built in his home garage, various cultural and artistic activities and classes are organised such as: dancing (salsa, bachata, hip hop, ballet, modern dance, break dance, traditional dance and fusion Andean dance), singing, guitar lessons, acting, street jazz, Zumba, fitness, painting, drawing, modelling... Through these classes, the children, teenagers and young adults get to reconnect with important life values and principles such as solidarity, discipline, advocacy for human rights, social inclusion... Some of them will then teach the next generations or even pursue their passion with further studies. And like that it continues, years after years, multiplying the impact of « La Nueva Semilla ».
In the most recent years, the organisation has been working towards developing international partnerships with the objective of becoming internationally recognised. These partnerships have opened new opportunities for the young people of the district. Some of the more experienced groups of dancers regularly take part in local, national, and international events such as dance festivals and contests. They proudly show their work to the outside world in other Peruvian cities such as Cusco, or Latino American countries such as Colombia, Argentina and Mexico. Another recent partner country is France, where « La Nueva Semilla » has already sent a few young people to experience intercultural learning, volunteering for French organisations for a few months in cities like Lille or Bordeaux. Although the organisation has never been financially supported by its government, this lack of help from politics has been a drive for finding innovative solutions and alternative ways to develop activities of good quality and ensure the well being of young people. With the involvement of a motivated community of people, « La Nueva Semilla » has managed to accompany more than 15 000 young people since its foundation 21 years ago, becoming the referential cultural Centre of the district Villa Maria del Triunfo.
INITIATIVE #2 : Proyecto « Kaypacha Kankunapa » The « Kaypacha Kankunapa » project was the second initiative we got to discover. « Kaypacha Kankunapa » means « A World for Everyone ». The project was founded in 2017 by Luis Blanco, 27 years old. It is volunteer-based and works only thanks to the involvement of a dozen of people. Its motto is “Equality and Justice for all”. Its main goal is to encourage individual entrepreneurship by creating learning and capacity building opportunities for the local rural and disadvantaged community. The main premises of the organisation are located next to a small school, in the rural area of Palca, city located in the central highlands of Peru. Around 20 children attend this school, all children of farmers. This strategic proximity allows the organisation to have a direct impact on this isolated youth, their parents and the rest of the local community. The range of activities implemented by the organisation is vast. It can be categorised into 3 main axis: biological and sustainable agriculture, artisanal manufacture and intercultural learning. Through its variety of workshops, the project enables the local community (children, teenagers, adults and elderly people) to develop new capacities, knowledge and skills in various fields such as ecology, culture, handcraft… thus gaining more independence and accessing as many opportunities as possible.
BIOLOGICAL AND SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE A large part of the project’s activities is focused on biological agriculture. With the help of volunteer agriculture engineers, the kids, adults and international volunteers get to learn how to grow plants without any use of chemical pesticides or fertiliser. Through workshops, a few engineers share with the community the natural technics they have learnt through tradition and years of work in the agroindustrial engineering field, teaching the whole process of growing plants, from the seeds to the final plant transplantation in the ground. Thanks to these workshops, the community can implement the technics at home, in their own garden or fields, wether it is for consumption or commercial purposes. They also become able to disseminate the informations and technics to their relatives. The kids of the school grow their own bio-garden inside of their schoolyard. Onions, salad, aromatic herbs, flowers and fruits, they get to plant their own plants, watch them grow through the seasons and then, eat their productions in the school lunches, or bring them home to their families. This project also ensures health and nutrition of the most disadvantaged members of the community. Aside from the kids biogarden, the organisation also owns a crop field in altitude, and, on the main premises, one greenhouse and a manufacturing centre. Amongst the many plants the project grows, there is a Peruvian fruit called the goldenberry. These berries are planted, harvested and then transformed into juice, jam and dried fruits. Once produced, these products are exported or sold in a local shop in the city centre, to locals and tourists. The money earned through these sells helps provide for the organisation’s costs. Very recently, the project started to tackle a new objective: reforestation. In order to reforest their territory and subsequently generate a micro-climate, the organisation has planted 1000 new trees thanks to the donation of the Peruvian Ministry of Agriculture.
ECOLOGICAL AND ARTISANAL MANUFACTURE Workshops of ecological and artisanal manufacture are organised with the whole community members. Recycling and repurposing natural resources such as seeds, bark, roots and fibres, the participants learn how to create new hand-crafted utilitarian or decorative objects. Bearing in mind ecological awareness (reforestation and recycling), this process allows the people to learn new skills and develop a potential sustainable new commercial activity, being then able to sell these objects to tourists or locals.
INTERCULTURAL LEARNING Thanks to its strategic partnerships with bigger organisations such as our Peruvian host, the youth organisation Brigada de Voluntarios Bolivarianos del Peru, the ÂŤ Kaypacha Kankunapa Âť project also welcomes international and European volunteers all year long for short term mobilities (2 months). The international volunteers main mission is to work with the children of the school. They organise non-formal education activities to teach english to the children, as well as any topic they are comfortable with. This allows children to discover new cultures and have a wider point of view on the world that surrounds them. Another project that allows intercultural learning is the mural painting. The mural painting is used as a red thread through the life of the project. Every group of foreign volunteers is invited to continue the mural together with the kids of the school. Bringing cheerful colours to the many outside walls of the school's facility, the mural paintings represents scenes and symbols of the Huari (or Wari) civilisation. It allows the kids to develop a sense of ownership over their History, origins and identity, and the volunteers to know more about the local history. Aside from the school classes, the volunteers also take part in all of the activities of the organisation, (agriculture and manufacture).
THE FUTURE: ECO-TOURISM AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP The initiative continues to expand its range of activities, opening new centres, welcoming new volunteers, and innovating with new activities, all in order to open new opportunities to its community and trying as much as possible to develop the local economy. One of the foreseeable objectives of the organisation would be to develop an eco-tourism activity in the region, inviting foreign people to learn about the local culture and showing good practices of sustainable agriculture and manufacturing. All of which would hopefully bring entrepreneurship opportunities to the local rural and disadvantaged community.
OTHER VISITS During our visit in Peru, we had the chance of visiting many other places, and meeting with a lot of people. Here is a list of some of them: • • • • • • • • •
BCRP Museum - A Museum built in the former National Bank Naval Museum Casa Grau - A museum dedicated to a famous Peruvian navigator National Museum of Archeology, Anthropology, and History Lima’s Memory Museum - Museum dedicated to the memory and victims of the internal Peruvian conflict Mountain village near Palca - Invitation in a local family to eat a « Pachamanca », a traditional Peruvian dish baked on hot stones buried on the ground. Chanchamayo, a region in central Peru, near the jungle - Trip in the jungle and meeting with the native community of Pampa Michi. InicTel-Uni, National Institute for Research and Training in Telecommunications National University of Callao IESTP Simon Bolivar
Youth Express Network Maison des Associations 1A Place des Orphelins 67000 Strasbourg France Website / Facebook Instagram / YouTube EU4YOU project Website / Articles
Active Youth Naugarduko g. 3 LT-03231 Vilnius Lithuania Website / Facebook Project supported by: