Ccaccaccollo Women's Weaving Co-Op, Peru

Location -  Indigenous community in the Sacred Valley, Peru

The community of Ccaccaccollo is an indigenous community home to around 140 Quechua speaking families. Despite being close to Cusco and Machu Picchu, the benefits of tourism rarely reached this community and women especially were excluded from educational and economic opportunities. 

Since 2005, our local team have partnered with a local women's co-operative (starting with only just 3 women) to help them bring back weaving traditions that were previously lost and make income from them. Funding was provided to source equipment and connections with travellers on our group tours, allows the women to share their culture and contribute to family incomes. 

There are now 46 people who own the co-operative and they are the first generation to be able to speak fluent Spanish. The women who who started the project also report that all of their children are now studying at university - something that was not economically feasible for them previously.