Avani creates sustainable livelihoods in the mountain region of northern India through conservation of natural resources, dissemination of appropriate technology and revival of traditional textile skills.
SLOW FASHION
Avani enables socially vulnerable women and school-dropout girls to lead a self-reliant life of dignity through training and employment with the producer owned cooperative, Earthcraft. Established in 2005, the cooperative is one of several social enterprises developed and incubated by Avani.
Earthcraft had been financially self-sustaining until the impact of the coronavirus lockdown in 2020. Supply chains for raw materials, as well as distribution channels for the finished textiles, have been severely interrupted. In response, Avani is raising philanthropic capital to support COVID-19 relief efforts, offset impact of COVID-19 and expand its online channels for marketing and sales.
Avani works with nearly 2,200 artisans and farmers in the Kumaon region of Uttarkhand. Nearly 80% of these are women.
NATURAL DYES
Born out of a deep respect for the environment, Avani focuses on conservation and self reliance. Avani endeavors to make sustainable technologies an integral part of life in the remote mountain communities of the Kumaon region. Avani develops and disseminates appropriate technologies for meeting the energy, water and livelihood requirements of these communities.
Avani engages farmers to collect and cultivate plants for production of natural dyes. The development of natural dyes and pigments has yielded a variety of products and expanded into woodstains, printing paste and even watercolours.
Energy for the dying and production processes comes from the Avani Bio Energy power station on campus, powered by the gasification of pine needles.
