Tawny Owl- Tagua Nut Figurine - Vegetable Ivory

Naya Nayon - Ecuador

The Techniques 

 The Naya-Nayon Artisan Story- Ecuador

Naya Nayon, an Ecuador-based NGO, counters poverty and deforestation by creating new jobs that depend on conservation and responsible forest management. To accomplish this goal, the company works with 23 local artisans to create figurines, jewelry and ornaments from tagua nuts. These nuts grow year-round in Ecuador and can be harvested without detriment to the rainforest. Naya Nayon gives its artisans all the training, tools and materials they need to work from home, and then manages work distribution from the organizations main office to make sure orders are fairly distributed.

Ecuador, the smallest of South America's countries, owes its unique biodiversity to its geographical setting and climate; a hybrid area of Pacific Coast beaches, sweltering rainforests, the UNESCO-protected Galapagos Islands and the snow-capped volcanoes of the Andean highlands. Sadly pollution, deforestation and global warming have threatened one of the World's most diverse ecosystems.

Fortunately, the collection and harvesting of tagua nut, a rainforest nut known as vegetable ivory for its likeness to animal ivory, has emerged as a viable alternative for villagers who once depended on logging, wildlife trafficking and other unsustainable activities to earn a living. Tagua's smooth, hard texture offers artisans an ideal medium for carving jewelry, boxes and other figurines, and helps keep animal ivory on real animals where it belongs. Harvesting tagua also encourages locals to depend on the rainforest for their livelihoods, which motivates them to better protect and conserve this part of the Amazon, thereby saving thousands of acres of trees, plants and wildlife habitat. With the near extinction of animal ivory, tagua has become a highly valued commodity by artisans and consumers alike.

Tagua nuts are actually seeds that grow in pods called Cabezas from the tagua nut palm tree. Villagers are paid to collect the Cabezas, which ripen and fall naturally onto the rainforest floor, and then harvest the seeds for artisans who will transform them into beautiful beads, jewelry, figurines and other works of art.

There are five steps involved in creating a tagua nut figurine: shaping, detailing, sanding, polishing and drying. Shaping is achieved using a circular sand paper with a very coarse grit. The piece is detailed with a Dremel tool and various bits and sanded with a fine sand paper. Next, the figurine is polished with a buffing cloth and a light polishing compound, and finally placed beneath paper or a towel to dry under a heat lamp for 24 hours. This is similar to incubating a chicken egg - not too hot, just nice and warm - and ensures the carvings won't crack later.

Naya Nayon's artisans work in home-based workshops throughout the country. Within each workshop, which is usually attached to an artisan's home, one artisan serves as the leader/manager and hires family members and friends to help produce products. New artisans begin by sanding and polishing figurines made by the more experienced artisans, and then gradually progress into the more complicated aspects of the craft, such as detailing, burning/coloring, and finally shaping the crude form of the nut. As demand and production increases, more artisans are invited to join the workshop. When the workshop grows to about 8 people, an experienced worker leaves to form a new workshop and train new artisans, and the cycle of learning continues.

Despite their humble backgrounds, many of Naya Nayon's artisans are highly educated with university degrees in engineering, law, business, and medicine. Unfortunately, Ecuador's shaky economy means jobs are scarce, even for highly-qualified professionals. Thankfully, Tagua nut carving has emerged as a sustainable alternative and is often the primary source of income for an artisan's family.