Our African Line of Gifts

The Art of People & Gorillas Living in Harmony

Our African Line of Baskets are changing lives thanks to you.

Body Time customers have purchased over 3000 baskets from weavers in the remote villages of Central Africa, providing life changing income to these hard working women.

Thanks to the ongoing partnership between Manda, the owner of Body Time, and Virunga Artisans in Orinda CA, the lives of the weavers living near the rare mountain gorilla are changing dramatically. Survival of the remaining 730 mountain gorillas greatly depends on the well being of the people living on the periphery of the parks in Rwanda, Uganda and DR Congo. By giving the women an opportunity to make a living outside the parks, fragile gorilla habitat and watershed are preserved for all.

Virunga Artisans works with the women and forest people (Batwa Pygmies) in this troubled region, most living on subsistence agriculture and having to walk miles to get enough water for the day. VA helps them build sustainable businesses based on traditional crafts that are consistent with local economic and social values. This "Trade Not Aid" strategy gives the women a sense of pride and accomplishment, also providing a role model for their daughters.

And thanks to Body Time customers, they have gone from a group of stoic weavers staring at their bare feet in 2006 to enthusiastic, optimistic women who can now see better lives for themselves and their families.

All can now access the local health clinic using their basket income. So many more children are now attending school in Nkuringo, Rubuguri, Buhoma, Sanuriro Uganda & Kinigi Rwanda. In the village of Nkuringo for example, there are now 22 girls in primary one class vs. 3 in the entire school in 2006 all thanks to customers like you who continue to appreciate their wonderful works of woven art.

With your support, there is now a shed being constructed in Sanuriro as a work and training facility. This will house the first "rainwater harvesting" system in the region, saving these women hours each day.

School gardens have been planted in each village, including high nutrition sweet potatoes from Merced CA and vegetables so the children have the critical nutrients needed to learn. The seedlings are then taken home, so that the entire family can benefit.

The Batwa Pygmies were forcibly removed from their traditional life as hunter gatherers in the forests when the national park was established. Because of your purchases, they have now started a "natural dye garden" providing a new direction to their lives. All of the baskets in the Body Time line are made with these natural dyes from flowers, herbs, tea, roots and seed pods.

So from all of the weavers of the Virunga region Wehbale and Murakoze!

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