The basket weavers whom we partner with live in and around the small village of Anegundi in the state of Karnataka in southern India, surrounded by beautiful landscape and vast nature. They have learned the ancient craft of basket making from previous artisans in their village and over time have mastered the skill and patience needed to hand crochet baskets out of the banana fiber rope. The fibers gathered from the surrounding banana plantations are spliced into thin strands and then hand rolled into rope before the crocheting takes place. Starting with just a singular strand of rope it takes an incredible amount of time and precise handwork to create baskets of various shapes and sizes.

The artisans work from the cooperative's community center, where the coils of rope and other material are kept. Aside from the financial benefits that the work brings them, the social interaction provided by coming together to work is an invaluable source of support for them. The group is still growing and in need of continuous orders to be able to sustain the few number of artisans currently practicing the craft. Our aim is to be able to help grow the group to include more artisans whose livelihoods can be sustained throughout the year.