Blog by Shakti.ism, a women's empowerment initiative

SAREETONIN is a saree donation drive that was coordinated by Six Yards Plus. It was started as part of Daan Utsav 2021, and is now a regular feature at Six Yards Plus. The sarees were donated to either go to Goonj for direct donation and further use, or to Shaktiism for upcycling.

This month, I’m sharing a guest post by my brilliant friend Laura, founder of a wonderful social enterprise called Khushi Kantha, that aims to empower women from marginalised communities in Bangladesh. I am honoured to know so many incredible change-makers that are tackling social problems with creative business solutions; people like Laura who want to make a lasting positive impact in the world. By the way, Khushi Kantha is launching their very first online auction, today, in honour of World Children’s Day. Read on to learn more about Khushi Kantha, and don’t forget to make your bid!

Running a social enterprise means that each day brings a different challenge. One task could involve calculating exchange rates in four different currencies. And then back to the original currency (one day last week). Other days, you might get to do administrative stuff, or play with ink

This month, we’re lucky to have what I hope is the first of many guest posts by incredible change-makers that are tackling social problems with creative business solutions. First up is my inspiring friend Michelle, who is a co-founder of The Harvest Fund, a US-based nonprofit organisation that helps entrepreneurially-minded, small-scale Zambian female farmers access agricultural innovations and microfinance.

Today I want to talk about social business: what it is and why it matters to me, to you, and why we’d all be better off if we moved towards a social enterprise model. I think this topic is particularly relevant now, and I ask you to think about the future of business with an open mind. Many of us have already realised this due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, as we’ve had to shift the way we work because of what has happened.

We did it! On 29th April 2020 we successfully raised £2,432 with 59 supporters in 28 days (an additional ~£600 was also raised offline) to train 10 tribal and disabled women to sew in Pondicherry, India. 

An introduction to My Choices Foundation, a Shakti.ism partner in Hyderabad that works to combat domestic abuse and sex trafficking in India.

I am delighted to announce the Basha Collection will be launching soon at Shakti.ism, particularly as our first collaboration to empower disadvantaged women outside of India. Basha is a social enterprise based in Dhaka, Bangladesh, that works to empower women who are at risk and those who have survived human trafficking.

All about reusable upcycled sari gift wrap: how to use it (with step-by-step and video instructions), the environmental benefits of not using wrapping paper, and the inspiration and story behind Shakti.ism's popular fair trade sari gift wrap.

I was in India in February earlier this year, purely on a social mission. You see, I had spent the last 6+ months scouring the country looking for accountable, transparent and most importantly impactful NGOs to partner with in India, primarily those that support and empower women and girls. So when I planned my trip to India, I basically planned all my activities and meetings back-to-back to maximise my time. I was spending an entire week away from my two children, which is not an easy feat and is not an opportunity to be wasted.

Currently crowdfunding: A Women’s Empowerment Sustainable Livelihood Project to train 10+ tribal and disabled Indian women. This project will be a partnership between Shaktiism CIC, Sewing the Seeds and Samugam Trust in India

An update from the founder of Shakti.ism: I returned home to London nearly a week ago, and I am still buzzing with inspiration, ideas and excitement from my recent solo trip to India, which was for my nonprofit social enterprise Shakti.ism – a women’s empowerment initiative.