The most striking thing about being in Peru has been the extent to which all the scholars have had to rely on one another. It has sometimes been in a work context and sometimes in a personal context. It has been incredibly encouraging, though, that it has consistently marked my time here and infused an element of joyful collaboration into the whole endeavour.

This reached, I believe, its peak in the fifth week of the programme, in which the project showcases for three out of four groups were held. All of the showcases involved running events for people outside the Make_Sense/Laidlaw world and all of them involved a number of logistical challenges to be surmounted for the event to take place. This week saw a slight reduction in the amount of time my Saphi group spent working on our own project, but a huge increase in the time spent helping others.

Wednesday was the art fair. Hosted jointly by the groups from Killa Natural and Communidad Cantagallo, the focus was on providing an opportunity for artisans to sell their art in the heart of Miraflores, famous for its tourists and shopping. The venue, however, wasn’t necessarily the most convenient in its location set back from a main street in a small, little-traversed alleyway. Enter us. The scholars not actively helping to set up the fair and manage the logistics of getting food and water to the artisans while they worked were mobilised to go out into the streets and spread the word that there was an art market going on. Any shyness was soon banished, and it was a huge step out of my comfort zone to attempt, with signs, gestures, and my little Spanish, to convey information about an important event on the street, in a foreign country, to people who may not necessarily be interested or enjoy being bothered as they go about their business.

But I did it anyways because it was my small contribution to the exciting work being done by the other groups. And, along the way, I met some lovely people who were truly interested in art and the bigger themes behind the fair, especially that of equality for indigenous artisans. For every few people who didn’t acknowledge my presence on the street, there was someone genuinely interested who wanted to be a part of the venture. It was an encouraging reminder of the power of just speaking to people; most people want to help if they can, I think.

And we adapted throughout the day as needed. When the location was truly becoming a problem, we set up a stand out in the street so there could be no doubt where the fair was. When the artisans needed to rest inside, out of the cold, we learned the prices of the art so that we could relay them to curious customers and tempt them back into the main venue. All of this was exciting because it was new and the effects of changes made to approach and attitude could be seen clearly. There was joy in being a part of something so dependent on cooperation.

The same was true for the Casa Ronald showcase at the end of the week, in which a successful event aimed at building a sense of community among local volunteers was punctuated by fun, games, inspiring talks, and even some karaoke. It was an event that wasn’t just building a community, but that required one to be executed as well as it was.

And on the Saphi front, there was a visit to the new Museo del Peru, a colossal brutalist structure far from the city centre which will soon be the site of the Ministry of Culture’s primary permanent collection and a string of exciting rotating temporary exhibits and workshops. It was a privilege to be able to see it in its early stages and it served as a reminder of the investments being made in Peruvian culture as the country becomes more and more internationally known for its rich history and heritage. I chatted with a fellow art history student who recently graduated and has been working at the museum and felt encouraged that young people were at the heart of this ambitious project.

So I left week five feeling the importance of friendships, partnerships, and cooperation to the success of ventures. But even more important was the importance of passion and joy for the common cause. The reason that things were able to succeed in the way they were this week was due to the feeling, shared by all of us, that what we were collaborating on was important, even in a small way. I will try to remember never to underestimate the power of believing in myself and my work.