1. UPB DESIS Lab
Women weavers of fique
Santa Barbara, Antioquia, Colombia
Key words:
Regions: rural-urban links | local resources valorization
Enterprises: craftsmanship | community-based enterprises
A collaborative network for a rural
community-based enterprise

2. Context:
Santa Barbara town is located south-west from Medellín. There is a community in the area
that’s involved for a short period of time in the production and transformation of fique,
which is made of the maguey tree leaves. This community of women is looking for the
consolidation of a community-based enterprise to become autonomous and improve their
work organization.

3. Project:
We conducted a 3-day camp where we came close to the daily practices of the rural
community gathered around the production and transformation of fique as part of the
investigation and the co-design process, involving participatory activities and knowledge
transfer exercises.

4. Design role:
To better understand rural practices their limits and possibilities, and be able to participate
in the co-designing process of a collaborative network between the rural community to
facilitate the work organization.

5. Design role:
To co-design a collaborative network between the members of the rural community, to
facilitate the work organization and the work production of the community-based
enterprise, to promote rural-urban links and local resources valorization.