When visiting India we are enthralled by the vibrant culture, touched by the kindness of the people, and captivated by the fascinating history of the country. But we are also deeply saddened by the rampant poverty—homeless masses, downtrodden families, emaciated children. We are grieved to know that every day in India, 5,000 children die of causes related to malnutrition. What can be done?
Slowly, the inspiration has come. Many of these people, though impoverished, are trained in wonderful ethnic skills such as hand block printing, weaving, embroidery, jewelry making, etc. Yet so many of these artisans are dependent solely on tourists to come purchase their crafts! And with the worldwide recession, tourism is down in India, which directly affects the livelihood of these families. We asked ourselves: What if we could help these artisans find an international market for their products, and then reinvest all the profits into humanitarian projects? The idea was born.
