CARI’s Origins
The CARI program was initially founded in 1999 as a collaborative effort by Charles S. Stanish and Mark S. Aldenderfer along with Peruvian archaeologists Cecilia Chavez Justo and Edmundo De la Vega. It has been funded by a variety of research grants and by generous personal contributions from individual researchers.
The Evolution of CARI
CARI recently joined forces with the Institute for Field Research, a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation, registered in the state of California, to maintain and grow a sustainable research and field school program in the South-Central Andes. CARI-Peru also became registered as an NGO in Peru. The need for a more formal institutional structure arose from the growing academic interest in the Collasuyo region, along with changes in Peruvian government regulations concerning the curation of collections and the issuance of excavation permits.
CARI maintains close ties with the Peruvian Ministerio de Cultura in Lima and the regional office in Puno, as well as the Universidad Nacional del Altiplano in Puno. Researchers have contacts with development agencies and NGOs, and work closely with local communities throughout the Titicaca Basin. Collaborative work with the Ministerio de Cultura has also resulted in the founding or improvement of two site museums (Museo de Pukara and Museo de Taraco).
Undergraduate and graduate students from the United States, Peru, Columbia, Brazil, and Chile have been brought to Puno to participate in excavations, survey, and lab work in the Titicaca Basin. CARI has also been used as a staging area for field schools in Taraco, Pucara, Juli, and Ilave, providing cultural and educational opportunities to undergraduate students.
Current Officers
President: Carol Schultze
Secretary: Aimee Plourde
Treasurer: Elizabeth Arkush
General coordinator: Cecilia Chavez Justo
Collasuyo Archaeological Research Institute 