I am happy to finally be back in India. I was thankfully in the US just long enough to enjoy the winter without feeling trapped by it! It was strange leaving the snow and unrelenting cold and moving straight into the warm Indian spring. This beautiful rural region on the edge of the Narmada River is full of sweet, enticing spring smells. Right now it feels good just to take deep breaths.
I ended up leaving the US at the end, rather than the beginning, of January due to a number of factors. My time in London and the US will ultimately benefit the Jhoole women as it gave me the chance to work towards developing some partnerships. We now have some exciting new projects to employ the Jhoole women: an organic cotton sari project in partnership with the London based NGO, The Environmental Justice Foundation, and a partnership with Mata Traders, a Chicago based fair trade brand that sells to fair trade retailers and boutiques across the US, creating clothing and accessories out of recycled denim. We also increased our own retailer base and organized a photography and textile exhibition at Womanspace. We are also on our way to being registered as a US based 501c3 nonprofit. Stacy McCaskill, leader of RVC SIFE (Students in Free Enterprise) has offered a great amount of help in guiding me through the application process. She teaches a class at Rock Valley College called the Global Small Business Incubator. She will be using Jhoole as a sample “client” to help students understand business concepts while also illustrating how business can affect positive change in the world. She will purchase products directly from us and help us to expand our retail base. She is coming to India with a few students in March to participate in this project on the ground. Her experience and expertise will be really appreciated!
Stacy also organized students to help setup the Jhoole exhibit at Womanspace this month, Feb. 1st- 28th. Photographs will be exhibited along with textiles woven by the Jhoole weavers. Exhibition proceeds will go to Womanspace and Jhoole. However, 100% of proceeds from pieces of textile art created by the Jhoole artisans Maya Verma and Deep Kewat will go directly to them towards the construction of sheds for their looms.
Maya Verma lives with her husband and three children, her mother in-law, her brother in-law and his wife. These 8 individuals share two small rooms. One of these rooms is almost entirely taken up by Maya’s loom. With the proceeds from the piece woven by Maya, she will be able to have a shed for her loom constructed, freeing up the available space as necessary living quarters.
Deepa Kewat had an arranged marriage when she was 15 years old. She is now 19 years old and has just given birth to her first child. She used to walk a few miles to work every day where she wove on a loom in a communal shed. Now that she has become a mother she wants to be able to weave at home so that she can take care of her baby while also earning the income to support her family. She has a loom, but unfortunately she has nowhere at home to put it. She currently lives with her husband and daughter in one tiny room and she cannot afford to build a shed for her loom. The person who purchases her piece of textile art will be providing her with the full funds needed to construct a shed which will allow her to continue to weave and support her family .
I am so excited about the opportunity to help Deepa and Maya in a direct way that will change their lives drastically!
