The G.R.O. Artisans invited their local and international customers to participate in a selection survey which ultimately determined the new 2010 design lines. The women have been working since December on the new designs, incorporating locally sourced natural material such as cow horn, Job’s tears, recycled glass, and mountain clay.  The new eco-line is enhanced by the use of high quality materials and fastenings, creating a true artisan line highlighting the beauty of Lesotho and the talent of its artisans.

The new catalogue will be launched March 1 - join our newsletter to receive the new catalogue or contact us at artisans@grofoundation.org to learn more about ordering!

Posted under Letters from Lesotho

The artisans visited a youth project in South Africa that produces unique and beautiful recycled glass beads.  This youth project, in a poor township of South Africa, provides youth in the community with not only skills and training but an opportunity to earn income.

The lampworked beads, made from used beer bottles and made one-by-one, present a beautiful shine and the kiln-fired recycled glass shows a earthy, matte finish.

Look forward to seeing these new beads in our 2010 eco-line to be launched March 1!

Posted under Letters from Lesotho

Yesterday we collected 17kgs of beads that we ordered from our South African wholesaler as part of the start-up kits for the G.R.O. Artisans Collective.  Today we spent hours unpacking, counting beads, and dreaming of our new 2010 designs.  Thank you to the Canada Fund / Canadian High Comission for the purchase of the start-up kits, and thanks to the ladies for painfully counting every last bead.

Posted under Letters from Lesotho

Many of the women in Lesotho suffer from HIV and seek ways to both support their treatment and provide for their families. In 2009, The G.R.O. Artisans Collective was formed in Hlotse-Leribe, Lesotho to provide HIV positive mothers with an opportunity to make a living in jewelery design and sales. Your gift of an artisan`s start-up kit includes everything needed to help a woman to start making jewelry - tools, beads, supplies, and business training with the collective. The Artisans Collective offers fair wages along with critical health care and family support benefits for its workers. Give this gift.

Posted under The Movement

Well, this week is shaping up to be incredibly productive and one of the most satisfying since my arrival here in Leribe. Not too many days into my stay I became very aware that the business environment functioned at a far different pace to that with which I was accustomed to. The differences in the pace of change and swiftness of communication have been a welcome adjustment as the level of face-to-face interaction is greatly enhanced bringing with it more moments of genuine conversation. For example, when arriving at a meeting of any kind, no matter the level of formality, there is a proper social sequence and code of conduct to follow. Upon arriving and greeting the individual or group everyone needs to take a seat whereupon introductions and background history will be laid out. As I am new to the country this is a process that is necessary even if you have previously met someone. The challenge to this business style is that I have already had to work on the required patience to allow for the system to function properly.

Even with some of these challenges I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish since my last post. Today was a milestone for The G.R.O. Foundation as the Artisans Collective and the bo-me(women) received their Associations Trade License from the Government of Lesotho to sell their products within the country. The significance of this license is that we can now expand our sales and distribution to help the bo-me build on their current successes. We are very proud of this achievement and want to congratulate ‘Me Mathabang and ‘Me Mamabula on clearing another hurdle.

Secondly, the Grannies Poultry Project and the bo-nkhono (grandmothers) invited me to present their first business training and savings seminar. These women have dedicated their time over the past year to the success of one of their community’s first successfully run Basotho social enterprises. Having familiarized myself with the work they have already put into the project I was more than pleased to be their first presenter. The night was dedicated to some of the fundamentals including saving strategies to cover essential overhead costs, inventory management, bulk purchase discounts, and profit distribution to fund their social programming requirements. This is a group of bo-nkhono that are presenting an excellent example for the youth in their community and I am thrilled to be able to assist them in any capacity they require. The plan is to continue providing them with business training and assisting them to renovate their existing poultry facility. Please be on the look out for ways that you can get involved with the Grannies project as we launch our upcoming Gifts of Hope online catalogue.

To close out my post this week I want to emphasis that I am very fortunate to have had the chance to volunteer with The G.R.O. Foundation at such an exciting and fruitful period in its operations. To have the chance to work with so many motivated wonderful individuals on a daily basis is an incredible gift. To all of the friends I have met and all of the donors that allow us to expand the scope and capacities of The G.R.O. Foundation here in Lesotho – Kea Leboha!

Khotso Salang hantle.

(Peace stay well)

Thuso Selialia.

Jason Clark.

artisans@grofoundation.org

Posted under Notes from Lesotho

The temperature is dropping here in Leribe as we have peaked into the late days of Autumn. With the change of seasons The G.R.O. Foundation, along with all of our current projects on the ground, have closed out the summer months with strong results. As the newest volunteer member of the G.R.O. team I have recently arrived from Whistler, British Columbia, to assist in project and capacity development here in Leribe until the end of June. During my stay my main objectives are to enhance the current business model for the G.R.O. Artisans Collective to ensure continued stable growth through increased cooperation with the Lesotho government and to establish international ties to create market opportunities for the HIV positive mothers; to provide complimentary support to the Grannie’s Poultry Project in hopes of completing the construction on their first chicken coop with the addition of electrical wiring, heating, ventilation, pest deterrents, and a catchments system for rain water; as well as to assist in daily operations of the organization – such as maintaining this blog posting.
After arriving on 24 May I have been going nonstop to get up to speed on all of the current operations here and meet all of the community members that are involved and affected, directly and indirectly, by the support of our donors and volunteers. Already, I can say with confidence that there are real positive changes to individual daily lives happening in and around Leribe thanks to the assistance provided to G.R.O. for food, education, health care, and shelter. Two of the many introductions I have had that struck a chord with me were the G.R.O. Artisans’ ‘Me Mamabula, along her daughter Joyce, and Family Scholarship recipient Kopano Phokoe. When we first traveled just outside of Leribe to meet ‘Me Mamabula and her daughter Joyce at their one room home, where she currently designs and produces all of her jewellery I found a beautiful healthy three year old who, although a bit shy, was smiling interested to know who this new visitor was. As part of the Artisans Collective ‘Me Mamabula receives far greater than fair trade wages for her jewellery as well as business training that will allow her to become a leader within the Collective. On the second occasion I met Kopano at Molapo High School where despite having lost his entire family to HIV/AIDS and needing to travel for almost two hours to and from Leribe to attend school he maintains some of the highest marks in his class. Kopano receives funding through the Scholarship Crisis Fund to ensure his basic needs are met at home and that he can afford regular transportation to school. These are just two of the dozens of people I have already had the fortune and opportunity to meet in my short stay thus far. Both are examples of ways in which we are trying to give the people of Leribe a helping hand to realize their dreams and become leaders of their community.
This past Friday we celebrated National Worker’s Day with a large festival bringing together over a thousand people for traditional Northern Basotho music and local cuisine. The Artisans Collective was in attendance where ‘Me Mathabang and ‘Me Mamabula displayed and sold their fashion jewellery. This experience gave us the chance to experience the natural retail skills that ‘Me Mathabang possesses! The festival also gave all of the NGO newcomers a chance to experience some of the flare the locals have to offer. While the ex-pats received sunburns and basked in the warmth everyone else in attendance was wrapped in traditional Basotho blankets and seshoeshoe dresses to keep warm as they cheered and danced to the music. Thank you to all the members of the community, Lesotho Boston Health Alliance, and OHAfrica for coming out and supporting the Artisans Collective. Please check out the photos from the event.

Again, thank you for your support and sign up for our newsletter to keep infomrmed about project updates and ways to get involved in North America. Please feel free to contact me with any questions, concerns, or for information on how you can assist the G.R.O. Foundation and its initiatives in Lesotho!

Salang Hantle!
(Stay Well!)

Jason Clark.
artisans@grofoundation.org

Posted under Notes from Lesotho, Uncategorized