At a Glance

Location: Colombia

Impact Areas: Suppliers, Environment, Cultural Conservation and Forest Restoration

People Supported:
Artisans and Small Producers, Indigenous Peoples

Joined NESsT Portfolio:
2024

Overview

La Asociación de artesanos pájaro carpintero y pájaro mochilero “Chunaky Baru” is an Indigenous-led association dedicated to advancing the livelihoods of artisans in the San José community, which belongs to the Ticuna - Huitoto Indigenous Resguardo in Leticia, Colombian Amazon. Founded almost two decades ago by master craftsmen and women belonging to the community, its mission is to recover and conserve the cultural and artistic heritage of the Ticuna, Huitoto, and Cocama Indigenous communities and provide dignified income opportunities that align with Indigenous practices and values. It currently benefits 30 small artisans, producers, and suppliers.

The livelihoods of the 180 families who make up the San José community in Leticia relies primarily on traditional agricultural activity (cassava, plantain, and pineapple), in addition to formal and informal work in the construction, tourism, and transport sectors. While these activities provide families with much-needed income opportunities, some promote harmful environmental practices and threaten traditional ways of life.

Chunaky Baru pays local artisans fair prices for their handicrafts, which include animal figures, cooking utensils, decorative items, and ceremonial pieces carved from mainly from palo sangre or bloodwood (Brosimum Rubescens) and sells them to small stores and outlets in local markets and national craft fairs. The association also sources from small producers who craft jewelry and various accessories using fibers of the chambira palm (Astrocaryum chambira) combined with various native seeds.

Chunaky Baru artisans exclusively use wood from trees that fall naturally due to weather conditions or when they reach the end of their life cycle. Ensuring the long-term sustainability of the supply chain and the sustainable management of forest resources is central to its efforts. It supports artisans to replant Amazonian trees and has restored 20 hectares of rainforest in the Ticuna - Huitoto Indigenous Reserve. The association also works to identify other native tree species for craftwork, building a more resilient supply chain that doesn’t depend only on one species. 

The Indigenous-led enterprise also works actively to support artisans and producers to pass on their knowledge to the youngest members of the community. It engages youth in training sessions and provides educational material and resources for apprentices, ensuring the transmission of traditional practices and techniques and preparing the community’s next generation of small producers. 

NESsT Investment

NESsT and its national partner, the Organization of Indigenous Peoples of the Colombian Amazon (OPIAC), will work alongside Chunaky Baru to enhance its financial management, boost digital literacy, and improve impact management and measurement. By contributing to the enterprise’s growth strategy, NESsT will support Chunaky Baru to increase its artisans’ income and further improve the livelihoods of communities in the San José community.

During its acceleration, Chunaky Bary will have access to NESsT and OPIAC’s technical support to develop new training courses for emerging small artisans, especially young people, equipping a minimum of four Indigenous individuals a year with essential skills and knowledge. 

NESsT’s investment will support Chunaky Baru and its members to restore the palo sangre tree canopy across 10 hectares of land and to continue to source fallen timber and trees that have reached the end of their lifecycle, contributing to a sustainable, resilient bioeconomy supply chain in the Colombian Amazon.