Threads of Peru would like to welcome the following people to our project, we look forward to working with you!
Project Manager & Liaison: Amanda Zenick
Amanda is Threads of Peru’s main point of contact on the ground in Cusco. She manages and supports ToP staff and volunteers.
She comes from Southern California but has spent several years living on and off in Peru. Amanda recently completed her Master’s degree in Latin America Studies, which focused on sustainable tourism and artesanía and handcrafts of Peru. During this period of study she participated in related projects in Trujillo and the Lambayeque area and worked with imported artesanía retailers in the United States. As an undergraduate Sociology student, Amanda studied and travelled extensively in Mexico, where she fell in love with Latin America and its artisan traditions.
Textiles Project Assistant and Community Liaison: Fani Karaivanova
As the Textiles Project Assistant and Community Liaison Fani assists our weaving instructor (Daniel Sonqo) with training projects for women’s weaving associations in the communities of Chaullacocha and Rumira Sondomayo, as well as assisting with tasks related to the textile pedidos and entregas.
Fani is from Bulgaria, she speaks English, Spanish, German, Bulgarian and is learning Quechua. She is trained as a sustainable tourism consultant and has worked in International Development projects in Afghanistan. She has lived and worked in Peru for over two years, seeing a lot of the country through treks with her husband. She is very interested in Andean textiles and is able to both knit and weave. She plans to improve her understanding of Quechuan language and culture through her time spent in the Chaullaccocha and Rumira Sondormayo communities.
Asst. Volunteer Coordinator and Project Assistant: Frankie Ginnett Frankie began volunteering at TOP in September 2011 and is involved with co-ordinating volunteers, social media campaigns and visiting the communities. She is originally from North East England and studied for BA of Spanish with Chinese at Newcastle University. Outside of her work with ToP, Frankie is improving her Spanish and learning more about Peruvian culture.