CraftHER Week 2!

Reflections from my second week in Kerala, India for the CraftHER central LiA project
CraftHER Week 2!
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For our second week in India, my cohort traveled three hours by train to Thiruvananthapuram, the capital of Kerala. Here we lived and worked with the Kerala branch of the Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA), a one-of-its-kind all female trade union composed solely of workers in the informal sector. SEWA has two main goals: empowering their members through collective organization and advocacy, and helping them provide a livelihood for themselves and their families. The founder of the SEWA Kerala branch, Nalini Nayak, met with us and shared her incredible life story, as well as thoughts on feminism, capitalism, economic empowerment, and gender parity. She was a living legend and meeting her has been one of the biggest highlights of the trip thus far.

 

SEWA members work in many different trades, and we were lucky enough to meet with a few of them. We visited sites where women weave bamboo into elaborate mats and baskets, throw clay pots out of local soil, and make handmade paper goods out of recycled scraps and cloth. SEWA provides both the materials for these women and a localized market to sell once they are completed. They also help their members find work in the domestic and home-care sectors. 

SEWA is an amazing organization, but their operations haven't changed much in the last few decades. We tried to help with this in small ways, giving feedback from the perspective of a younger audience, creating digital product brochures, and setting up an Instagram page so people can more easily learn about their work. This work concluded at the end of the week when we presented all our compositions to the leadership team. Hopefully our work will have a least a small positive impact on SEWA, helping them achieve their goals and reach more members of the younger generation who can carry on their important work. 

Overall, Week 2 in India has been just as amazing, if not more, than week 1. I'm learning so much every single day and trying to soak up all of the knowledge and memories I can—looking forward to the next month! Now on to Kottayam!

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Go to the profile of Megan Shaw
7 months ago

Such a fantastic organisation to work with, on to next week!

Go to the profile of Lucia Laffan
7 months ago

An incredible experience - even better for sharing with you all! 

Go to the profile of Lily Bates
7 months ago

It was such an amazing week filled with so many amazing people! 

Go to the profile of Asha Scaria Vettoor
7 months ago

What a lovely post to summarise your Week 2, Ellie! Thank you for sharing.