Andrés and Juanita currently live in the equatorial city north of Quito called Mitad del Mundo.

For more than five years they have been working with Minga making beautiful jewelry with tagua, coconut, acaí and pambil seeds. Andrés learned his trade from his parents who also worked with tagua. They presently work with five families in Quito and six families on the coast who supply them with tagua and other materials. Andrés and Juanita then design and assemble the jewelry in their home.

Juanita says, “my goal was to buy a house,” which they have now done through the steady business and fair trade wages from Minga. In the future, she is looking to improve their house by building new bedrooms for their children: 7 year-old Matthew and 6 year-old Yohanna.