ANDEAN AGRICULTURAL PROJECT KUSI ÑAN

Kusi Ñan is an Organic Farm project created by the graduates of the Kusi Kawsay Andean School. Following the Kusi Kawsay education, the first graduates (2012) were motivated to revitalize and reclaim their culture by contributing to their community as agents of change. Kusi Ñan serves as a model for Climate Change adaptation and mitigation! Kusi Ñan provides a beautiful, healthy and safe space to conduct empowering workshops for children, youth and communities.

About Kusi Ñan

Kusi Ñan – Joyful Path in the Quechua language – is our organic agriculture and permaculture project that promotes healthy eating, food sovereignty, and the recovery of Andean agricultural wisdom from an educational, cultural, and community perspective.
From an educational standpoint, the students of Kusi Kawsay learn in a hands-on way the ancient Andean methods of cultivation, permaculture practices, as well as their contribution to environmental adaptation and mitigation. At a cultural level, its graduates have found inspiration to start their own ventures or continue their studies, without needing to leave their communities to seek employment. At a community level, agricultural exchanges have helped share climate adaptation strategies based on ancestral knowledge and create collaboration networks for community resilience.
Today Kusi Ñan is a flourishing organic farm that also serves its nutritious products to locals and restaurants in Pisac, around the Sacred Valley, and in Cusco.

Mission

Kusi Ñan’s mission is to be efficient in and support rural agriculture through the wisdom of our ancestral Andean practices, which hold the solutions to ensuring global food security, tackling climate change and ensuring sustainability for a livable future.

The Seed Qolqa: Living Memory and Future

A central component of the project is the Seed Qolqa, inspired by the ancient Andean community storage systems. The Qolqa functions as a space for safeguarding, exchanging, and learning about native seeds and local varieties.

About the Land

Kusi Ñan Farm leased a beautiful plot of agricultural land below the school grounds, and once it was revitalized with the irrigation system put into place and the soil regenerated organically, the planting began. Using ancient Andean knowledge of agriculture and local seeds, the youth were trained and mentored by farmers of the community, and the growing of nutritious organic food finally took root. Permaculture was taught, growing organic greens. Sadly, in late 2018 the lease of the land was not renewed, so the project was moved to the school land and functions on a smaller scale with the same essence of promoting and teaching organic agriculture where the growing of nutritious organic food took root.

Partnerships

The startup of the farm project was made possible by donations from individuals, and its continuation was made possible by support from EMpower and Enactus Ryerson University. Thanks to this valuable support and mentorship Kusi Ñan was established, and we are incredibly excited about the growth and potential for the future.
EMpower / The Emerging Markets Foundation is a global philanthropy focused on at-risk youth in emerging market countries. With a world-wide community of supporters, they strategically invest in vital, local organizations who work to empower youth.
Enactus stands for: ENtrepreneurial—having the perspective to see an opportunity and the talent to create value from that opportunity; ACTion—the willingness to do something and the commitment to see it through even when the outcome is not guaranteed; US—a group of people who see themselves connected in some important way; individuals that are part of a greater whole.

Workshops and Activities

Kusi Ñan brings together teachers, families, local elders, and institutional partners in a collaborative effort that strengthens food sovereignty from the school to the community. The project integrates environmental education, intercultural approaches, and active participation, promoting sustainable and mindful practices.
Agricultural exchanges are held according to our Andean calendar, along with food fairs, environmental education and healthy eating workshops, climate change events, among others.