five ACCESSORIES is partnering with MarketPlace of India to support fair trade co-ops in India make fair trade handbags from India. Please read about how we are helping to shape lives outside Mumbia, India.
'By building and running their own businesses, the women learn valuable skills and are able to earn a living to support their families. Additional programs support the women by offering education and enrichment opportunities. The aim is to empower these women to overcome personal, cultural and financial obstacles and achieve success. Empowered with independence and self-confidence, they can take active roles in shaping their own lives as well as their families and communities.
Their communities benefit, as well. Leadership-building initiatives and decision-making in the workplace have given the artisans the tools and confidence to become social activists. They have tackled such problems as lack of clean water, corrupt shopkeepers, insufficient garbage collection, poor health information and domestic violence. The business itself is a means to an end, a vehicle for social change. And women are excellent agents of change, reshaping lives and cultures, and ensuring that improvements live on through the next generation'
