Emprendimiento social para la recuperación de saberes ancestrales: la grana cochinilla en Teotitlán del Valle

Ancestral knowledge forms part of the biocultural heritage of a population, therefore, it is essential for protection and safeguarding. In this sense, social entrepreneurship emerges as a strategy for promotion and revitalization of ancient techniques. In the Zapotec village of Teotitlan del Valle, Oaxaca, Mexico, artisans make a living from producing wool textiles, which are dyed with grana cochinilla, a prehispanic natural pigment. Even though this technique has become less popular, its promotion is still relevant for its contribution to the sustainable management of textile production in the community. This qualitative-descriptive study aimed to observe everyday life in this place through a series of visits and the development of a focus group. As a result, a social entrepreneurship model was created that recovers the transformative action of social actors in order to rescue and promote their ancestral knowledge. Additionally, this model fosters community development, enabling the inhabitants to transform their social assets by preserving this knowledge.