Vicuña management in Apolobamba represents a success story of recovery of a threatened species inside a protected area, which also translated into economic benefits for local people.
The recently established partnership between WCS and the Beatriz Canedo Patiño Fashion House opens up a new opportunity for working with corporate initiatives that value products coming from protected areas, and are the end result of cultural traditions and conservation efforts by indigenous people. This partnership began with the visit of this fashion house to Apolobamba, in November of last year, to participate in the vicuña fiber shearing campaign carried out by the Regional Association of vicuña manager communities of Apolobamba, with the technical support of WCS.
As a result, embroideries and accessories inspired in the vicuña fiber and in the shapes and colors of the lichens found in the area, have been included in the designs of the new Fall collection 2019/2020 by Deanna Canedo, that has been entitled, ‘Wind’.
At the official launching of the new collection, during the fashion show in Santa Cruz de la Sierra this past April 6th of 2019, the designer dedicated it to WCS, highlighting our important contribution to biodiversity knowledge and conservation. The fashion show was organized by a fashion promotion company called Diseño y Autores Bolivianos (Design and Bolivian Authors) (DAB), and included the participation of important international fashion magazines such as Vogue México & Latin America, L’Officiel Argentina, Elle Mexico, Vogue Italy and Global Fashion Exchange New York.
The Beatriz Canedo Patiño Fashion House has expressed their commitment to allocating a portion of the revenue coming from the sale of this collection to WCS activities for the conservation of vicuña and its habitat in Apolobamba. Currently, WCS continues supporting vicuña management, health related activities and management of the native grasslands in the protected area.