Uplifting rural people through craft

Roodeport resident Emma van Wyk currently supports various rural projects across South Africa.

Although she didn’t start these projects, she looks up to the various women who took the initiative to start such a project.

The project is aimed at helping people living in rural areas to become breadwinners by creating employment.

Local talent and creativity is brought to life as people who join the free project are given the platform to use their own creativity to make handmade crafts that can be sold.

A studio is set up where people from rural areas can learn a few techniques to make crafts, thereafter, they can work from home and go to the studio when they need resources or to hand in their work so that it can be sold.

Van Wyk supports the projects that are currently being run by selling some of the different crafts made at the various studios and then the people, who actually made the craft, will then get paid.

There are studios in Kwa-Zulu Natal, Limpopo and the Western Cape and Van Wyk wants to start the project in Johannesburg.

“I am really passionate about supporting South African people, especially those in rural areas. I would love to start my own project like this in Johannesburg but it takes a lot to start up and support would be needed in order to get the project going,” said Van Wyk.

“I don’t want to be one of those people who wake up and say, ‘I could have done something to help’,” she added.

Save the Rhino is also another project that Van Wyk works with.

”I realised that we can’t focus on wildlife only; we also have to help people otherwise we won’t get anywhere. There is no point in helping one without the other – people will never stop poaching if they are hungry,” explained Van Wyk.

Details: emma@dnawild.co.za