Palestine is a country rich with cultural heritage. Small artisan groups provide work to women, who create beautiful crafts to support their families. Yet, this once-thriving local industry is declining under decades-long Israeli military occupation, and women's work and family livelihood are increasingly under threat. Join us to empower small artisan groups in Palestine. Help us provide them vital services to overcome their challenges, and build a sustainable and viable heritage industry.
Craft-making is a vital source of income for women in marginalized communities across the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. An informal sector trade, it enables those without employable skills to use traditional knowledge for living. Small artisan groups distribute work in the community, yet are unable to reach markets freely, confined behind the barriers and checkpoints. Despite their dedication, many have been forced to scale down in recent years under the growing obstacles of occupation.
Fair trade organization Sunbula will connect the small artisan groups to the outside markets and resources. Working in partnership with 25 artisan groups, our work will extend to about 1000 artisans. We will ensure their products will regularly reach our shops for marketing, and provide access to materials. We also will provide training by local designers for the artisans to develop skills. Our services will aid the artisan groups to become resilient and transform into a viable industry.
Women artisans will be able to break the cycle of poverty through economic empowerment and self-sufficiency, and their social status will increase as they become a provider for family. We have seen firsthand that many women of the disadvantaged background aspire to provide their daughters better education than their own, and income from craft-making is often invested in college education for girls. Empowering small artisan groups is to build an empowered future generation of women in Palestine.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
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