It is the people from 36 countries
around the globe that are at the heart of Ten Thousand Villages.
People living in Third World countries from Africa and Asia to South America get a chance to have a better
life. Most of their dreams are to earn an honest living, provide a home, food and education for their
families, and do what they love to do. This was all unattainable for these artisans until Ten Thousand
Villages came along.
The organization began in 1946 when Edna Ruth Byler, a Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) worker, visited
volunteers in Puerto Rico. The volunteers were teaching sewing classes in an effort to help improve the lives
of women living in poverty.
When Edna came home from the trip, she brought back several sample pieces of needlework made by these women
with the hope of generating orders. Her inventory grew to include cross-stitch needlework from Palestinian
refugees and hand-carved Haitian woodenware.
In the early ‘70s, the ever-growing project became SELFHELP Crafts, an official MCC program. In 1996,
with the help of thousands of loyal customers and selfless volunteers, the project became known as Ten
Thousand Villages.
Ingrid Heinrichs Pauls is the education and media co-ordinator for Ten Thousand Villages. When she was
practicing as a nurse, she also volunteered at the organization for 10 to 15 years. “This is something I have
a passion for,” she says.
The volunteers are devoted to the organization because of its principal philosophy. The organization is a
non-profit Fair Trade Organization (FTO) and they’re designed to benefit artisans by helping to build a
sustainable future through fair trade. Ten Thousand Villages provides a vital income to Third World
artisans by selling their handicrafts and products in 50 stores across Canada and around 150 in the United
States.
“We commit to our artisans long-term so they know they’re going to have work on a long-term basis,” says
Heinrichs Pauls. Through Fair Trade, artisans receive respect, dignity and hope from working hard and earning
fair value for their work. Heinrichs Pauls says they particularly provide work for women, with 70% of their
producers being women.
Because of Ten Thousand Villages, the work these women are provided with allows them to still maintain their
cultural values and also gain self worth. Many of them can’t work outside of their home due to their
culture, and making jewelry or pottery from their homes allows them to look after their families.
“A lot of [the] women have had no education and no job experience, and because of this they have no
self-esteem. When you give them an income, you give them a voice in their homes and in their communities,”
says Heinrich Pauls.
They have constant communication with these producer groups. Every year their buyers go on buying trips and
visit the artisans, and a small group of their staff goes on a Learning Tour to visit their producers.
Heinrich Pauls went on this tour, visiting Laos and the Philippines in 2005 in what she describes as “an
overwhelming trip.”
She recalls her encounter with women in this particular ethnic group who had what Pauls says was just awful
housing because the government had put them in a terrible housing situation in 1979, claiming it’d be
temporary. They had little opportunity for income and their children couldn’t go to school because they
didn’t have the money to afford the uniforms required for admittance. They came out with a product involving
unused newspapers and now provide a steady income for their families.
The products Ten Thousand Villages sell are endless since they come from all over the world. They include
skin care, jewelry, personal accessories, all kinds of food products, musical instruments, furniture and home
décor accessories.
Each country has its own traditional colours that they incorporate into the product, but Ten Thousand
Villages does request certain colours and styles. “It depends on the product. We do work closely with the
producer groups. We direct what we want the colour to be. And for other things we choose their traditional
colours and at some points, that’s all that’s available,” says Heinrich Pauls.
Why it’s very popular among Canadians is simply because of the beauty of the product. “[They are]
really intriguing, unique products, and when they hear the story it often brings people back,” says Heinrich
Pauls.
Each month they debut a new collection and the underlying theme among all of them is being environmentally
sustainable. The collection this month is from Indonesia, India, Peru and Bangladesh.
The Core Collection includes gorgeous burma
teak (stone) pieces, as well the very popular green recycled glass. The Lotus Collection has a gorgeous
hand-carved wooden flower box. A lot of the reclaimed wood products and furniture, explains Heinrich
Pauls, has either been underground for centuries, has come from forest fires, or been eaten away by
water.
The Late Spring Collection combines the classic beauty of freshwater pearls, soft pastels and cool blues, and
complements the Lotus Home collection effortlessly. Look out for the silk scarves and glass bead necklaces
and bracelets.
These artisans thrive off of their
culture and environment for inspiration. “A lot of the people are doing a craft that their parents did or
ancestors have done,” says Heinrich Pauls. In the next year Ten Thousand Villages will be selling new
products from every one of the 35 countries.
