Zodwa Ngcamphalala is a Swazi woman who lives in southeastern Swaziland and makes baskets for Gone Rural. Her husband, who lives in South Africa, is only able to visit Zodwa several times a year and so the income she generates weaving crafts allows Zodwa to pay for her children's school fees and to provide more nutritious food for her family. Not only that, but Zodwa also saved enough money from her work to start her own micro-enterprise offering solar-powered cell phone charging services to people in her community. Ntombi Vilakazi is another woman who works with Gone Rural. Her father passed away when she was thirteen years old, and so instead of attending school she began working to support her family. Ntombi speaks on how her experience with Gone Rural has impacted her life:

Now that I am working with Gone Rural, I am able to afford the basics that are needed by my family. I feed them, cloth them and am responsible to give my children money for things they may need at school.  I have money from orders we get at Gone Rural. My husband is happy with the work I do.  My friends and community are proud of what we do and they see it as a good thing for the community that women are able to work for their children.

Zodwa and Ntombi are just two of the women working for Gone Rural. Often times, basket weaving is their only source of income and the women are supporting an average of eight children. The women use a traditional craft process, lutindzi grass weaving, to make baskets, mats, and other woven products. Lutindzi grass is harvested high up in the granite mountains of Swaziland. Women collect the grass, and then dye the grass to color it and use a specially designed fuel-efficient wood-burning tank boiler to reduce the amount of wood they need. The women then work from their homes and villages to create intricate woven and plaited crafts like these: Shop more products from Gone Rural including placemats, candle holders, and baskets.

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View more gifts for grads including journals, jewelry, and accessories here.

I joined 2500 women’s rights activists from 140 countries in Istanbul this past weekend for the 12^th AWID International Forum entitled Transforming Economic Power to Advance Women’s Rights and Justice, www.awid.org .  The energy and enthusiasm at the conference was palpable. With so many interesting and relevant sessions to choose from, narrowing my options was a challenge, but, with the convergence of the world’s leading advocates for women’s rights and justice, each session led to fascinating discussions and ideas for collaboration.

Our partner, Potohar Organization for Development Advocacy, from Pakistan

During the panel on “Reclaiming Women’s Economic Power in the Context of Militarism and Post-conflict Situations,” I met women from Chechnya on the frontlines of political organizing and legal rights work under the repression of Sharia Law; a woman from Iraq, who spoke about gender-based violence and her group’s effort to educate women about their rights; and a woman from Afghanistan who explained that all the military money coming into her country is changing the social fabric of her community—with increased economic power, men are taking on multiple wives and poor families are selling their daughters. At a session on women’s economic empowerment, a Mayan activist from Guatemala spoke about her work to push back against land takeovers of multinational companies.  She said, “Indigenous people were pushed to the mountains because the mining companies wanted to exploit the low-lands and then when they discovered minerals in the mountains, they pushed us back down. They see us as a commodity.” I presented the work of GGP at the session on “How Fair is Fair Trade for Women?” The following discussion included questions around labor conditions, carbon footprint and sustainability. Everyone agreed that there needs to be a sharing of best practices in both fair trade and non-fair trade entities.  At the end of the session, I met up with Margaret and Shelley, representing our partner in Swaziland, Gone Rural, and their development organization Bomake.  Other GGP partners at the forum included PODA from Pakistan, Kandahar Treasure and the Afghan Institute of Learning from Afghanistan, and Manuela Ramos from Peru. I came away from the AWID forum encouraged by the solidarity I experienced and hopeful that our work together will bring about a future with a new economic model based on human rights, dignity and equality.

Still haven't found that perfect gift? Let us inspire you with these gifts ideas that are sure to please any type of mom.

           The Aspiring Author                               The Perfect Hostess

The Jet Setter                          The Saver

The Modernist                            The Color Lover

The Bold Accesorizer                               The Gourmet

The Online Shopper                                    The Book Worm

The Interior Decorator                        The Photographer

Trash to Treasure

We have all been versed in the benefits of recycling, but what’s this new term floating around? Upcycling? What’s the difference?! Simply put, Recycling is when waste is broken down into raw material that will be used to make new products. Upcycling is when waste material is taken in its current state and turned into something new. Many people may not be familiar with the term, but the idea has been around for ages.  Basically, “upcycle” is just a nifty term used to describe repurposed products that have been made with a bit of thriftiness and creativity! Even though recycling is a great first step, it requires energy to sort, treat and process the waste that will eventually be used to make carpets and fleece jackets. Upcycling, on the other hand, reuses a material without degrading its quality, so energy is not invested into changing its composition for subsequent use. Upcycling not only benefits the environment, but allows us to view materials in a different light by promoting reuse over disposal. Our artisan partners have found ingenious ways to take everyday waste items and turn them into something spectacular.

Our partner, Creata, from Colombia has upcycled plastic bags to weave this toiletry case and added a Wayuu handwoven accent to make it distinctly unique.

 Our partner in India, Community Friendly Movement, ingeniously constructed votive holders out of broken glass bangles.

Destiny Reflection, a group in India that works with formerly trafficked women, upcycled this blue sari to create a fantastic tote bag. Upcycling is gaining momentum as the “etsy generation” is placing more value on handmade items and conscious consumers are watching their carbon footprint. The convergence of these two ideas has lead to innovative repurposed products as artisans are giving waste items a new life in extremely creative ways.  So next time your friend comments on the, “lovely recycled bag made of candy wappers” you can politely add that it's actually upcycled!