Our goal is to bring Malian mothers’ handmade products to a Western market with the hope that these women can fund their children’s schools and educations.

Stephanie spent her junior spring semester in Bamako, Mali, studying gender and community empowerment. While studying women’s co-operatives, two in particular struck her: one specialized in cloth-products, the other in shea butter goods. The first co-operative was created by thirty women who were determined to fund a school for their children. They chose to make and sell quilts, dolls, bags, mudcloth (a traditional tapestry), waist beads and clothes. One of the women was a politician who utilized her contacts to obtain land and engage non-profit organizations, including the Red Cross, to help fund and build the school and store. The second co-operative is nation-wide women’s cooperative that sells shea butter products, ranging from soaps to creams, to shampoos and conditioners. Recent threats from Al Qaeda in the North have limited tourism to Mali, thereby limiting potential sales for these women’s co-operatives.

Stephanie, Mandy, and Mehdi have a thoughtful, dynamic plan to connect these women’s co-operatives to a Western market by bringing their products to Middlebury, Vermont. The women’s co-operatives could greatly benefit from additional income, which will be made possible by the generous assistance of local businesses including: Carol’s Hungry Mind Cafe, The Middlebury College Bookstore, and Vermont Folk Life Center. With additional income from a broader market, these Malian mothers will be able to ensure the education and well-being of their children by continuing to make their handmade products.

For specific details, please see the Plan of Action, which a MiddSTART grant will help them accomplish.