Andean Pastoralist Livelihood Initiative

In this episode of Weaving Voices, Rebecca chats with:

• Mauricio Nunez Oporto, a restoration ecologist based in Peru.

Here are some highlights:

The Andean Pastoral Livelihood Initiative

• Rebecca introduces Mauricio Nunez and his new project,  the Andean Pastoral Livelihood Initiative  (APLI).

• Rebecca delves into the pastoral and textile history of the Andes along with some of the community’s cultural values.

• Mauricio emphasizes the importance of an intergenerational transfer of knowledge.

Voices of the Pastoralist Community

• Rebecca addresses the fact that there is a serious lack of voices from the pastoralist community centered in the textile sustainability conversation.

• She explains that this is the reason why Western markets and concepts will continue to dictate the economic wellbeing of pastoralist communities.

Embodying Indigenous Development

• Mauricio talks about the specific infrastructure he would like to see implemented in the herding community.

• He also explains the importance of classifying in order to develop the project proposal for a processing plant.

• Mauricio discusses facilitating community planning processes in grassland communities that prioritize embodying Indigenous development.

Roundtable of Landscape Development

• Mauricio talks about roundtable discussions with grassroots leaders, development organizations and local governments, and pushing their landscape development agenda forth.

• He also highlights the importance of giving members of local communities an equal say in decision making to provide accountability for integrated landscape planning efforts.

The Green Growth Economy

• Mauricio describes carbon as the land grab of the 21st century.

• Rebecca addresses carbon credits as just another way for people to extend the growth model, noting that they don’t actually reduce a company's footprint as is claimed.

Investing in Infrastructure

• Rebecca and Mauricio discuss investing in infrastructure and building programs from the bottom up through public and private finance to add value to raw material and support more income for those producing raw fiber.