​March 8th is International Women’s Day, a day dedicated to celebrating women and their achievements.  Sharing the Dream is fortunate to work with many amazing women. Many of the artisans are women, the elders at the Elder Center are primarily women, the majority of the scholarship students are girls and young women, and Sharing the Dream is a women led organization.  We have found that by working with women, it improves their self-esteem.  This improved self-esteem means that their entire family, including their husband, looks at them differently, and often times treat them with more respect and equality. Women also invest in the health, education, and general well-being of their children and family, which leads to positive changes in future generations.

Isabel, our Artisan Development coordinator, is one of these amazing women.  Years ago, a little girl from a mountain village was introduced to Diane.  She wanted to go to school, but her father had died and there wasn’t any money.  Even though she was only in middle school, she would go to school in the morning and weave by candlelight at night to earn a little money.  She was malnourished and the family ate primarily tortillas and salt.  They spoke very little Spanish.  The man who introduced them asked for a scholarship for Isa so that she didn’t have to weave at night.  A generous woman from Sharing the Dream sponsored Isabel through middle and high school. 

Isabel lived at the Sharing the Dream office during high school and cleaned in exchange for her rent.  It was then that we discovered her talent for a variety of handicraft techniques.  Isabel started as an assistant to our Artisan Development coordinator, and when that person left, Isa was hired in that position.  

Years later, Isa is still with Sharing the Dream and is doing a great job. Her shyness disappeared as she became more confident. She is now married and has two little boys, who are healthy, well-nourished, and well loved. Her oldest son goes to school, which he loves. Isa is proud of her family.

What a difference having an opportunity made for this shy village girl. Isa is poised, accomplished, a terrific mother, and a wonderful role model.  Isa was given a chance.  That is what most people here need.  By purchasing a product from Sharing the Dream, you are providing opportunities to people in Guatemala so that they can provide for their families and change their lives. 
https://www.sharingthedream.org/donate.html

​Throughout the year the Artisan Development team stays busy by creating samples of new products, quality checking products, visiting with artisans and keeping our online stores up to date. One of the most important goals of the Artisan Development program is to train the artisans on various topics which will help to facilitate their work and help them to become more self-sustainable.

​This July, we held a two-day workshop at our office in Panajachel and had the participation of six different artisan groups. The workshop focused on commercialization, but we also spoke about other related topics. One of the main focuses was on creating a catalog to showcase products, which the artisans were very interested in. We also brainstormed different ways the various artisan groups can find new markets to sell their products. 

Another important topic of the workshop was on having a board of directors for their group and sharing the responsibility of the board with the whole group. Other topics that we covered were having good communication for orders with clients, a summary of how to calculate prices, and color trends. Calculating prices and color trends are two workshops we have done in the past with various artisan groups. We wanted to take the opportunity to review past workshop content on these topics with the artisans, as they are so important to having a product that sells and is fair to the artisan.  Unfortunately, many artisans in Guatemala are exploited and do not receive a fair wage for their work. When they sell their products on the streets, many times they barely make enough to cover the costs of materials, much less cover their time to make the product.  Sharing the Dream is a registered member of the Fair Trade Federation, and the artisans receive a fair wage which reflects the time and effort that they put into each handmade piece. As part of the Artisan Development program, we also do workshops on quality control, exportation, and adding value to products. 

​One of the most interesting parts of the workshop was hearing the experiences of the artisans and having them share their experiences with one another. Through sharing their experiences, they realized that many of them have faced similar challenges and were able to benefit from the ideas of others about how to overcome those challenges. We love it when the artisans are able to support and learn from each other.  

By participating in the commercialization workshop, the artisans learned new strategies for selling their products, which helps them to find more work and make new contacts with people who can support their businesses. Having a product catalog allows them to reach out to new potential clients in a professional manner which can lead to new orders. When artisans receive work, they are able to support themselves and their families, as well as invest money back into their businesses to continue to help them grow. When they receive an order from a client and are paid a fair wage, it gives them the economic resources to send their children to school and get adequate healthcare for their families, both of which have the power to provide positive generational differences for them and their families. 

By purchasing the crafts in one of our brick and mortar stores in South Dakota, through our Retail Website, or through our Wholesale Website, you help to support the artisans, and you help to support the Artisan Development program so that we are able to continue hosting workshops for the artisans.  You can also make a donation to the Artisan Development program so that we can continue to host workshops for the artisans.  For $20 you can provide a scholarship for an artisan to participate in a workshop or for $200 you can sponsor a one-day long workshop for an artisan group.   https://www.sharingthedream.org/donate.html

CEDEC is a weaving group from the Guatemalan state of San Marcos, high in the mountains close to the Mexican border.  This talented group of weavers works on the foot loom to make fabric that can later be used for bags and purses.   

​​In the early 80’s, Aurelia was invited to participate in some workshops about women’s rights and indigenous rights in a town a few hours away. After attending the workshops, she was so moved by what she learned that she returned to her village and began to tell other women about all of her new knowledge. The women then formed together to create the Community Development Center (Centro de Desarrollo Comunitario-CEDEC) . In the days when the group started, there were 45 members. That was more than 30 years ago, and now the group has dwindled down to seven dedicated members who spend their time making typical fabric for the region where they live. They generally sell their products in the market in the nearest town which is about an hour away by microbus. Buses only come in and out of the village sporadically and many people walk if they have somewhere they need to be. The small village where the women live is very rural. It’s located in the western mountains of Guatemala and surrounded by beautiful panoramic views of the Guatemalan countryside.

​The women are fortunate to have a weaving center, which was built in 2009 with financial support from Sharing the Dream and some wonderful donors. The center now holds nine foot looms where the women work. The center offers a quiet, focused workspace where the women can weave in comparison to the often hectic environment of the home.

Recently, we visited the women at the weaving center to do a workshop to them about quality control and combining colors. Part of the focus of the Artisan Development program is to give workshops to our various artisan groups about various topics which will be helpful for their work. Our goal is to ensure that all of our artisan groups have the capacity to find new clients and produce quality products so that they receive repeat orders. 

The women in the weaving group have, on average, five children each. One of the encouraging things that we heard was that even though the highest level of education among the women is 4th grade, almost all of their children have studied and earned their high school degrees.  Some have even gone on to study university courses. In a country where only 48% of males and 44% of females attend secondary school, it was encouraging to hear that the women have made education a priority for their children (“At a glance: Guatemala, 2013).

You can purchase products made with fabric from Cedec in our stores and in our online store  soon!