Stitching a New Future in India
Just as khadi (handspun) cloth was a part of India’s Gandhi-led struggle for independence, Indian women are sewing khadi silk designs for freedom. They are earning fair trade wages — money they use to feed, clothe and educate their families — in a country where 800 million earn less than $2 a day.
Using a grant from the nonprofit League of Artisans, Gramshree trains unemployed women from the slums of Ahmedabad, Patan, Katchh and Amreli in the art of embroidery, stitching and tailoring. In turn, they use these skills to create intricate khadi silk quilts, pillows, clothing and accessories marketed and sold by the League of Artisans.
Gramshree traces its roots to a group of young volunteers who were inspired by Ghandi's work and message. They fed and bathed street children, and later established Gramshree as a nongovernmental organization to help serve more young people in need. Gramshree helps the children's mothers gain job skills and earn money, and to provide information and support with issues central to Gramshree’s mission, including saving money, health awareness and education.
Three hundred million Indians live below the poverty line. Only government and corporate employees — less than 10 percent of the workforce — are guaranteed legal minimum wages, social security and minimum working conditions. Most of India's workforce lives in rural areas and is dependent on low-paying agriculture jobs.
The League of Artisans works with innovative nonprofits and NGOs such as Gramshree to help develop sustainable incomes for tribal, rural and women artisans. It provides business support to artisan groups through product design and development; marketing and sales; production and delivery; and organization and enterprise.
This strategic philanthropy directly affects 12,000 people who provide for about five family members. A ripple effect also appears to be improving wages and working conditions in the entire handicrafts sector.
Weaving Fuwwah Together
Located near the Nile Delta, Fuwwah was a weaving mecca for more than 800 years. In recent times, the decrease of international tourists and lack of local demand for rugs has hit the town and the industry hard and left the area with limited job opportunities for its growing population. Many Bedouin weavers have been forced to sell their looms for the price of wood.
Now they are finding work again through a progressive U.S. importer who believes in helping develop rural economies around the world through promoting indigenous crafts. The weavers use traditional techniques requiring no dyes of any kind and 100 percent long-shank desert wool sheered from live sheep to craft durable reversible tonal rugs.
Keeping Culture Fired Up in the Ozarks
The master blacksmiths of Arkansas' Stone County Ironworks are dedicated to preserving their art and mountain culture — where hand-made is a symbol of self-sufficiency and integrity. Since the 1870s, Stone County Ironworks has been an icon of the isolated Ozark community of Mountain View, an area that has developed a self-sustaining economy with a strong tradition of handmade crafts and folk music. In the 1960s, people who moved here seeking a more community-based way of life helped keep Ozark culture and traditional handcraft skills alive.
Using the art of force, fire and antique tools, the blacksmiths transform reclaimed iron into heirloom handcrafted iron furnishings and fixtures that are “true, honest, strong and of the earth,” values they hope to pass on to successive generations.
Join a Discussion Forum in this category