|
Under the leadership of Liz Kibalama Ssenoga, small groups of women
gathered in
Kampala and other villages in Uganda to form the African Art Women’s
Initiatives in October, 2007. This project is new, and with the
collaborative efforts of Liz Ssenoga in Uganda and Marissa Garcia in the
United States through email, brainstorming began to start the
development of ideas and products which may be marketable in the United
States.
Marissa and Liz met each other through an online forum as a part of a
global group who worked towards the installation of a water purifier in
Mubende, Uganda.
Liz hopes to help empower the women by providing the opportunity to use
their creative skills to assist them in sustaining their families, as
well as enhance their self esteem through creative projects. She
emphasizes collaboration between the women, so that those who are
skilled can teach those who need to learn new skills. Many of the
women are single mothers with children
to support.
Through the growing P. E. A. C. E. circle of friends (People
Encouraging Artisan Collaboration and Empowerment) in the United States, AAWI hopes for a successful future in assisting and empowering the
women of Uganda through arts and crafts.
|
