Project 1000 - PROJECT 1000 | Shanti Seva Nidhi Trust

SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTS HANDMADE BY BACKCOUNTRY FEMALE ARTISANS

Project 1000 is designed to engage rural women in handiwork activities aimed to enhance their creativity along with starting them on a journey of self employment. We intend for them to be able to have a degree of autonomy that can help them take their rightful and respectable place in society.

A COMMUNITY INITIATIVE BY SHANTI SEVA NIDHI

Vision

Self-Sufficiency For All

Our mission is to inspire and empower backcountry women to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams and unlock their full potential. We achieve this by handcrafting innovative products through creative upcycling, demonstrating our commitment to sustainability. Our ultimate goal is to help them envision a future of limitless possibilities.

Recognition – There is an abundance of talent that is left unemployed in rural India. The birth of “Project 1000″ was mainly due to the recognition of this opportunity for community benefit. By encouraging skill development and creative activity, we are taking a step towards changing the economic narrative of women from the hinterlands of Maharashtra.

Revival – In the modern-day, we are surrounded by over-standardized products. With the increase in mechanization, we have forgotten the charm and aesthetic handmade articles offer. In light of this thought, we aim to revive the traditional art of weaving on wooden looms & crochet, wherein, prioritising human artistry and imperfection over mechanical meticulosity renders a unique charm to every product. Thus, every article becomes a piece of art.

Reinvent – Instead of spoon-feeding charity to the hinterlands, we believe in investing in them and their skill sets. However, the process doesn’t end there; after having attained mastery in knitting, they are educated in artistic trends in the global market. Our mission is that they should be able to independently design and produce products which can compete at the international level. We provide an entrepreneurial platform for rural women so that they get a chance to be a part of the global community. This is how we Reinvent a Community and redefine a “Community Project”.

To form a rural women’s collective and engage them in productive activity.
To run short monthly vocational training batches to teach design, weaving, knitting and quality control.
To run soft skills development programs to complement the vocational training.
To participate in various retail promotions which can provide them with a sales platform.
To encourage corporates and individuals to utilise these products made by rural women for gifting purposes, thereby indulging in Responsible Gifting.
To put them on a sustainable productive cycle of manufacturing and selling, thus starting them on a simple entrepreneurial path.
To have regular knowledge-based up-skilling workshops.
To generate a positive impact in the lives of multiple rural women.
To encourage the use of 100% cotton shopping bags and other items, thereby discouraging single-use plastic and contributing towards the encouragement of Indian cotton farmers.
To provide the women with adequate marketing and sales support by engaging with online and offline sales channels.
Promote a sustainable lifestyle by developing beautiful everyday-use products from factory-wasted textiles.

The main idea behind PROJECT 1000 is to encourage weaker sections of the female community to utilize their latent talent and become gainfully employed.
Develop unique and creative articles which can be sold in the market to help them earn a decent living.
All articles are woven using waste fabric yarn to encourage UPCYCLING as a step towards factory wastage elimination.
Creative product development is done along with intense market research to make each product more versatile to increase its usability for customers. This helps in helping the customer get more value for their money & encouraging longer utilization of each product.
This is an important step towards creating sustainable communities and practising sustainable living by drastically reducing waste.
The Project 1000 program aims at the social & economic upliftment of rural communities which reflects in the core values practised at SHANTI SEVA NIDHI.