Daily Times

Kaarvan Crafts Foundation launched a three-day countdown to Human Rights Day on Tuesday 10th November. A successful campaign originally titled #ThinkRight was launched across social media consisting of Kaarvan’s programs, highlighting the work being done on grassroots level and featuring rural female artisans who have been trained to become entrepreneurs while living in villages using technology. Kaarvan also celebrated Human Rights Day on Tuesday 10th November with 49 women at Kaarvan Waniawala Center in Gujranwala. Societal stereotypes were tackled through interactive activities such as ‘Mirror and Windows’ which aimed to communicate how difficult it truly is to empathize with a culture, a lifestyle and attire that is not your own. In all these activities the underlying principle was being a learner/ a listener to different perspectives and instead of wanting to “be right” to wanting to “get it right.”

More activities were conducted to build the artisans critical thinking skills as they grappled with concepts of comfort zones hindering progress and limiting them to ‘chaar-diwari.’ Further discussion also improved their communication and collaboration skills. For betterment the women recognized that they need to step outside their homes, to let go of whatever fears they may hold and know that failure isn’t black, it’s a mere cross for them to learn from and rise. Kaarvaan Crafts Foundation was established as a not-for-profit company in 2004. Kaarvan strives to create a world of cooperation and collaboration where men and women stand side by side as equals. Our local research has shown that after three months of grassroots community work more than 51% of the women were able to improve the lives of their children.