Empowering rural groupsSince the devastating tsunami in the year 2004, the Lifelong Learning Foundation have been working with tsunami affected women along the Andaman cost (please see our Post-tsunami project link for more information) to teach them a skill that would bring about extra income to support their families.
The Objective is to:
1. Apply local knowledge, traditions and skills to product crafts with characteristics specific to the locality.
2. The development of a sense of self-reliance in rural-crafters, based on initiative, creativity, productivity and decision making at the local level.
3. Providing new opportunities for work to those who were once excluded.
4. Empowering minority communities by breaking down social and educational barriers.
Nature Resorts (our partner organization) acts as a distribution channel for these products to bring awareness of Thai workmanship and skill to local Thais and foreign tourists visiting the destination. When tourists purchase these crafts, the money is considered a donation to the Foundation to support this on-going project. It goes towards the costs of training, buying art materials, and subsidizing volunteers who work with the villagers. The item you pick is seen as a souvenir and token of appreciation for your generosity.
We would like to thank all those people who have purchased these items at the resort (no matter how small!). One person can make a difference!