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Mexican women embroiderers shared safeguarding Yucatecan Mayan embroidery actions at the global living heritage meeting
Mexican women embroiderers shared one of their experiences in strengthening Yucatecan Mayan artisanal embroidery as a living heritage to develop an economic model and achieve social recognition founded on gender equity and cultural diversity during the 19th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Asunción, Paraguay.
At the side event "Exploring Connections: Economic Development of Indigenous Peoples," attended by over 1,000 representatives from different countries, Fidelia Ek Góngora, an artisan from the town of Tipikal, and Cándida Jiménez, an embroiderer from the municipality of Maní and co-founder of the U’Najil Chuuy Collective, took part.
Both explained how Yucatecan Mayan embroidery knowledge, techniques, and practices, and its social, cultural, religious, and economic connections have joined as part of the Yucatecan identity. They also discussed how a model of community organization led to its declaration as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of the state of Yucatán, alongside a series of actions to improve sustainable development.
This initiative is part of activities led by more than 350 women artisans from twelve municipalities in coordination with UNESCO as part of the project Economic and Social Development with a Gender Perspective through Textile Art, financed by the Banorte Foundation and supported by the Government of Yucatán.
The women embroiderers, practitioners of the living heritage, developed strategies and measures of the Safeguarding Plan for the Yucatecan Mayan Embroidery to encourage its protection and revitalization through cultural, educational, social, and economic policy proposals.
Fidelia Ek Góngora highlighted the importance of the legacy transmitted by her grandmother and family across generations to younger women, thus becoming guardians of a vast wealth of traditional knowledge that has transformed into their principal economic activity, even at the community level.
For her part, Cándida Jiménez emphasized the importance of support from international organizations such as UNESCO and private initiatives like the Banorte Foundation in enabling and promoting these types of initiatives that transform the economic, work, cultural, and social conditions of communities while strengthening empowerment of women.
In the dialogue moderated by Carlos Tejada, National Culture Officer in UNESCO Mexico, Fidencio Briseño, Director of Cultural Heritage for the Government of Yucatán, also took part, saying:
“From Yucatán, Mexico, we commit to promoting strategies that set up pathways for public policies supporting intangible cultural heritage as an identity element, such as Mayan embroidery and language, biodiversity, and all cultural components that make us present-day Mayans in a great nation. Together with the state government and organizations such as UNESCO, we work collaboratively toward their revival.”
Juan Manuel Nungaray Valadez, Mexican Ambassador to Paraguay, pointed out the importance of making visible throughout the world the importance of culture and the arts for well-being, such as embroidery, not only for the communities that carry out this cultural manifestation but also for all the sectors that benefit. For this reason, he announced his commitment to carry out coordinated activities between Mexico and Paraguay with the support of his diplomatic function.
The session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage took place from December 2 to 7, 2024. This meeting serves as a pivotal international forum for global and public discussions on living heritage, established following the creation of the Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
