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Grassroots Solutions
The idea for Crafts Center's Grassroots Solutions grew out of the travels of many our consultants who are often struck by how artisans' problems in some places continue to plague their success or stunt their business' growth while, in another corner of the world, a community with a similar problem has found a solution.
Often, the answers are ingenious and creative. Sometimes they are the result of inspiration and leadership. They can result from introducing a new technology, or from applying simple or traditional techniques in new ways. Some take a few months to implement; others require years of dedication and unswerving persistence against many obstacles to succeed. Several were funded by international loans or grants, but a surprising number were achieved with relatively little money. More important was the vision and the work to make the solution happen.
We encourage you to contact those you think can help you directly. We've supplied their names and contact information at the end of each "solution" to encourage a worldwide dialog, with artisans and business owners becoming mentors to each other when they have a problem or a great idea or solution to share. We also hope you will tell others about any information here that may help them solve problems and become more successful. By building on the experiences of others, advances can be made that will benefit artisan enterprises, their families and communities.
And we hope those of you who have solutions to problems not listed here will share them with us, so that we may then share them on this website with artisan entrepreneurs worldwide. Just send a brief summary of the idea or solution to us at craftscenter@chfinternational.org.
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