Build women’s fair trade businesses and help them with production, marketing, and microfinance strategies to create economic development in two communities in Hidalgo, Mexico.
In recent years, this semi-desert region has also been subject to severe environmental degradation and crop failure. Many families struggle to maintain adequate supplies of food, water, and firewood. The depletion of natural resources, together with high rates of unemployment, has resulted in many men migrating to the U.S and other urban areas. The result: many women are left with the responsibility of managing households single-handedly in the face of enormous challenges.
The project provides alternative economic and micro-finance opportunities for hundreds of women in the area. The Corazón Verde fair trade business sells and markets the women’s goods, leading to increased sales and increased income for families.
Indigenous women will become leaders and promoters of educational, economic, and environmental projects; Corazón Verde will become a recognized fair trade brand; indigenous families will be able to cover basic needs.
This project has provided additional documentation in a Microsoft Word file (projdoc.doc).