A foundation born of the páramo
We have worked since 2019 with the rural communities of Pijao, Quindío, in the heart of the UNESCO-listed Coffee Cultural Landscape.
Our story
It all began with a cup of coffee. Community tourism brought visitors from the United Kingdom to the mountains of Pijao, and on 31 December 2018 one visit changed the course of this territory: Lotus Children’s Foundation met the community and asked a question that still guides us: “How can we help your community?”
In 2019 the first donation reached the rural schools of La Palmera and El Espartillal: new roofs, school equipment, a refrigerator, a solar panel. During the pandemic came phones for remote classes, face masks, seeds and tools.
After seven years of continuous work, and following our founder’s visit to London, the Frailejones Foundation was formally constituted as a non-profit in September 2023. Today it actively supports 615 people, with Lotus Children’s Foundation as its parent foundation and our donor.
The frailejón and the lotus
The frailejón is the guardian of the Andean páramo: it grows barely one centimetre a year and lives for centuries. It captures moisture from the mist and feeds the springs where water is born. It is persistence made plant — like the rural communities that endure and flourish.
The lotus, symbol of our parent foundation, blooms in murky waters without losing its beauty. The frailejón gives birth to water; the lotus is born of water. Frailejones is the Colombian páramo walking hand in hand with its parent foundation.
Mission
To improve the quality of life of rural communities: educational resources, community development and sustainable practices, with long-term self-sufficiency — inspired by the wide international experience of Lotus Children’s Foundation (Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, United Kingdom).
Vision
To empower people and communities to achieve self-sufficiency and resilience, securing a brighter future for generations to come: cultivating a generation of leaders who will keep lifting their communities long after our initial interventions.
Our values
- Commitment
- Dedicated to a constant positive impact in every community we serve.
- Trust
- Relationships built slowly and sincerely, with partners and communities.
- Collaboration
- Culturally relevant programmes, driven by the community itself.
- Sustainability
- Long-term benefits for the environment and the community.
- Empathy
- Understanding and sharing the experience of the people we serve.
- Love
- At the heart of our work is a deep love for people and the environment.
Our team
The Foundation is led by its founder and sustained by a team of volunteers — largely former scholarship holders who once received support, graduated, and now give back. That circle is our best measure of success.
Transparency
- Legal name
- Fundación Frailejones — non-profit organisation (ESAL)
- Registered address
- Pijao, Quindío, Colombia
- Formal constitution
- September 2023 (continuous work since 2019)
- How to support
- We do not take monetary donations; we welcome volunteering and supplies for our gardens
Would you like to sow with us?
Your knowledge, your time or supplies that support our gardens become real opportunities for the rural communities of Pijao.