Collaborative Work Model - "Casa Comunal"

As project manager, I led the design and construction of a "Casa Comunal", a community house in San Juan de Yanayacu, deep in the Peruvian Amazon. The project was funded by Muyuna Lodge in response to a collective request from local families for a shared space for gatherings, decision-making, and cultural exchange. After more than two decades of coexistence, the construction offered a chance to honor this history and strengthen relations through shared responsibility.

The process followed a cooperative model in which labor, financing, and design were distributed between benefactors and beneficiaries. From leading community meetings to extracting sand from the Amazon River, I took part in every stage—applying lessons from my bicultural background. On one hand, the project drew on traditional Amazonian practices like Economía del Don, rooted in reciprocity and trust. On the other, it reflected the blue-collar, lead-by-example work ethic I absorbed from American construction managers.

With a modest budget of $10,000, this model proved effective. Community members received carpentry workshops from a government program, while also contributing wood extraction, drying, and finishing. Their voluntary efforts, paired with institutional support, made completion possible. The result is not just a building but a bicultural solution—one that bridges local traditions with modern management practices to foster cooperation and resilience.