SOS - SAVE OUR SKILLS

WHAT? A NEW INITIATIVE WHY? TO SAVE OUR MANUAL SKILLS FROM EXTINCTION WHERE? EVERYWHERE BY WHOM? EVERYONE FOR WHOM? ALL OF US HOW? BY SUPPORTING SOS–SAVE OUR SKILLS

It is imperative that we reverse the continuing degradation of the manual skills employed to make cheap 'tourist' souvenirs, designed by people ignorant of either the history or cultural identity of the makers, with no specific purpose or use in mind and with no possible function for the local community.

It is imperative that we not only research and document these skills but also return to them the superior environmental, intellectual and economic value that they deserve.

That we start treating the practitioners not as impoverished members of underdeveloped societies but as representatives of man's most precious assets - his own abilities and his creative independence. And, as a result, that we pay prices appropriate to their skills to ensure their economic and cultural survival.

TEXTILES

made only from natural fibres without any chemical treatment

BASKETRY

made only from natural sustainable materials

CARPENTRY

only small-scale functional furniture and household objects from natural sustainable materials

POTTERY

sun-dried pottery made only from locally available materials

LEATHER

made only from non-endangered species