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Khalil Ahmed, right, and a fellow metalworker crafting kitties just outside of Moradabad.<\/p><\/div>\n
Moradabad, India, is a big city. Situated on the banks of the Ramganga River, it boasts a population of nearly 900,000 and an active handicrafts industry that accounts for a significant portion of the country\u2019s artisan exports. Though it\u2019s best known for its brass wares, local workers craft a wide variety of goods for international distribution, from handmade paper notebooks to mosaic vases made from discarded glass. And in the atelier of Khalil Ahmed, an ironworker stationed a mere 12 kilometers from Moradabad proper, Clarissa the Curious Cat Planter<\/a> comes to life.<\/p>\n When you first lay eyes on Clarissa, you\u2019re probably struck by the cuteness of her little iron nose, or the artful curve of her accompanying tail. What you likely don\u2019t realize is that Clarissa\u2019s cuddly (if metallic) exterior does a whole lot of good beyond the obvious act of putting a smile on your face. Her creator, Khalil, is part of a growing group of local artisans that benefit from the support of an organization known as Noah\u2019s Ark<\/a>, an international export house that\u2019s been serving the area for nearly 30 years under the watchful eye of Moradabad native Samuel Masih.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Employees of Khalil’s workshop hold up their handiwork (and smile for the camera).<\/p><\/div>\n No stranger to the handicrafts community, Samuel is a native of the area. \u201cAfter completing my college, I started working in the same industry,\u201d he says. \u201cI come from Moradabad, which was a brass town 30 year[s] back.\u201d Once he started out, however, Samuel noticed that the treatment many workers faced was unfair. They were underpaid, with few benefits, if any, and their quality of life suffered greatly as a result. \u201cI felt that something should be done for the grassroots artisans who were very much underprivileged,\u201d he continues. \u201cAll this gave me an idea that we should start a business for the welfare of the artisans and invest [a] certain percentage of our profit [in] capacity building, education, sanitation, and health-related projects for the artisans.\u201d<\/p>\n And so Samuel got to work founding an organization that sought to empower, not exploit, local artisans. A series of core objectives guided him: A desire to give producers a leg up and assist them in establishing their own workshops; a drive to educate artisans on the importance of fair working conditions; a commitment to fair and equal pay; and a stand against child labor, to name only a few. Years before the World Fair Trade Organization<\/a> had even formed, Samuel was working to enact fair trade principles in his community and, by extension, uplifting local artisans.<\/p>\n Khalil and family.<\/p><\/div>\n \u201cI think during [the] last 30 [years],\u201d says Samuel, \u201cwe could achieve pretty much what we targeted.\u201d And the organization\u2019s successes are numerous. \u201cWe established 20\u201322 artisans\u2019 workshops, every year educating almost 350 children belonging to [the] artisan community.\u201d Samuel and his team also built toilets and secured a clean water supply for his artisans\u2019 homes and workshops. But, says Samuel, \u201cOur proudest moment was when some of the artisans\u2019 children were able to join higher studies and in 2016 when we were able to move our new 30,000 square foot facility for which we had saved money for all these years.\u201d That\u2019s a lot of square feet\u2014and nothing to sneeze at.<\/p>\n But that\u2019s not the whole story, either. In 2000, some 22 years after the organization fulfilled its first major international order, Samuel and his team founded an NGO, Noah\u2019s Ark Artisan & Welfare Society, to be dedicated fully to social work, including initiatives to provide clean water and educational opportunities to members of the larger Moradabad community. \u201cEvery year,\u201d says Samuel, \u201cwe invest almost 11% of our net profit in social projects and these are not confined to artisans only. Many of our artisans are in villages and we invite all the people for health camps and their children for schooling.\u201d<\/p>\n Khalil with another cheerful piece of ironwork.<\/p><\/div>\n As for Khalil, Samuel insists the organization\u2019s choice to support him was simple. \u201cWe initially supported [him] to establish [a] workshop,\u201d he says, \u201cas he is a good artisan.\u201d Their support, which began with small orders, eventually evolved to include assistance in purchasing raw materials, investment in machinery, and the acquisition of a vehicle. Buoyed by these efforts, Khalil now works exclusively with Noah\u2019s Ark, where he has been a fixture for over a decade.<\/p>\n And Clarissa? She does a bit of extra good, too. \u201cThe artisans around Moradabad have started making handicrafts out of used metals, recycled candy wrappers, wood, broken glass, tires, etc.,\u201d Samuel notes. \u201cBut still very few artisans are using recycled materials as [it] takes lots of time to make them perfect to use.\u201d Made from recycled iron, Clarissa\u2019s a promising step in the right direction for an organization that\u2019s striving to produce goods in an environmentally friendly way. Plus… like we said… she\u2019s pretty darn cute.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.uncommongoods.com\/blog\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/45904_1_1200px.jpg\")
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