Peru

Established in 2014, WMF Peru serves as a local representative for WMF, assisting with project management and outreach.

WMF first became involved in Peru in 1997, when a call to develop a conservation and urban rehabilitation plan for a twelve-block stretch in Cusco's Historic Center. Three years later, a group of local personalities led by Marcela Temple founded the Committee for Conservation of Peru’s Heritage Sites, to support WMF’s growing involvement there. Its inaugural project at Huaca de la Luna was supported by a $1 million grant through the Robert W. Wilson Challenge to Conserve Our Heritage. In 2014, the Committee became WMF Peru, establishing WMF’s affiliate office in the region.

Over the past few years, WMF’s team in Peru has been involved with two major projects: the restoration of the facade of the MALI Museum thanks to a grant from the European Union and the landscape design and urban renovation of the Parque de la Exposición, made possible by the real estate company Inversiones Centenario.

Between 2021 and 2022, WMF Peru received support from the Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation (AFCP) from the U.S. Department of State for its work on Cerro Sechín’s stone slabs. WMF also used its Crisis Response Fund to support the restoration of the historic church and tower of La Jalca Grande, which had suffered major damage following a devastating earthquake. In addition, the team joined efforts with local and international partners to preserve Kuelap Fortress after the collapse of a section of its south wall due to heavy rains. On the other hand, the Regional Office of the Ministry of Culture in Cusco started restoration work at the church of the San Francisco de Asís de Marcapata after years of collaboration on the technical dossier alongside WMF, the Society of Jesus, and the Marcapata Parish.

In 2023, WMF Peru focused on conservation work at Los Pinchudos and Gran Pajatén, cultural heritage sites inside the Río Abiseo National Park. In addition, thanks to The Robert W. Wilson Charitable Trust and American Express, alongside our local partner Instituto de Montaña, WMF Peru launched a project at the Yanacancha-Huaquis Cultural Landscape centered on the rehabilitation of an ancestral water system to tackle water scarcity, one of the main consequences of climate change in the region.

Today, WMF Peru continues to support the projects integrating heritage, landscape, and local development while improving the quality of life of the communities around cultural heritage sites.

WMF Peru Board of Directors

• Juan Carlos Verme Giannoni, President
• Martha Zegarra Portella, Vice President
• Annick Benavides Workman
• Bénédicte de Montlaur, ex-officio
• Xavier de Romaña Benson
• Elizabeth Dulanto de Miró Quesada
• Claudia Ganoza Temple
• Marcela Ganoza Temple
• Lorna B. Goodman, ex-officio
• Manuel Ugarte Maggiolo

The work of WMF Peru is, in part, supported by the WMF Peru Endowed Fund. The WMF Peru Endowed Fund is made possible by the Ganoza Temple siblings in memory of their mother, Marcela Temple.