Yesenia is president of the Phanakis Association of Women Artisans and treasurer of the Tsimane’ Indigenous Women’s Organisation (OMITS)
Yesenia Vie studied for a technical diploma in Gastronomy as she is passionate about cooking. Furthermore, when she was a little girl, her mum taught her how to make handicrafts and since then her hands have never stopped creating. Today, she makes necklaces, earrings and bracelets using seeds she grows in her garden or collects from the forest, sometimes undertaking long-distance walks to do so. She also produces motacú blowpipes and mats, helping to preserve this artistic and technical knowledge.
Her involvement with the IEK-CHANGES project began during workshops in her community where we shared knowledge about her culture, forests, rivers and territory. Over time, and to meet the needs of the women, these meetings gave way to training sessions on managing sustainable production associations, such as Phanakis.
Yesenia is the current chair of the Phanakis Women Artisans’ Association, where women from her community organise themselves to generate income from handicrafts and achieve economic independence. Her hope is that, together, they will continue to learn and improve their skills as craftswomen so that they can sell more and keep growing.
The IEK-CHANGES project is an ERC Starting Grant funded by the European Union (IEK-CHANGES, 101117423) to Dr. Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares.
Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Council Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
El proyecto IEK-CHANGES es una beca «Starting Grant» del Consejo Europeo de Investigación (ERC) financiada por la Unión Europea (IEK-CHANGES, 101117423) y concedida al Dr. Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares.
No obstante, las opiniones y puntos de vista expresados son exclusivamente de los autores y no reflejan necesariamente los de la Unión Europea ni los de la Agencia Ejecutiva del Consejo Europeo de Investigación. Ni la Unión Europea ni la autoridad que concede la subvención se hacen responsables de los mismos.
