We consumers pride ourselves on purchasing from brands instituting Fair Trade Certified™ practices, ensuring the well-being of their employees by paying fair wages, improving factory working conditions, and giving back to communities in which they operate. However, many of us, including the brands themselves, are unaware of a significant amount of overall production, and 20 percent to 60 percent of garment manufacturing is subcontracted to artisans working out of their homes where it is difficult to certify these standards.
At just 24-years-old with a recently completed Master’s degree in social work, Rebecca van Bergen was inspired to increase debt-free economic opportunities for women, particularly those living in challenging environments, and founded the nonprofit organization Nest.
“I became interested in the craft-based economy through a number of forces converging on the unique relationship between handwork and women. My grandmother was often sewing and my great-grandmother made beautiful quilts,” says van Bergen, now the Executive Director of the organization. “As part of my studies, I traveled to India and noticed how women in the communities were always making things with their hands. That link between women and craft struck me as powerful on personal and community levels, and as I realized with greater research, economic levels as well. This led me to the idea for Nest.”
Since 2006, Nest expanded from serving 1,500 handworkers across the globe and now reaches 100,000, helping artisans and handworkers access the market and ensuring sustainable business growth. The organization offers a variety of services at no charge connecting the global handworker community with brands through their Nest Sourcing program, matching artisans directly. This cuts out middleman brokers in the marketplace to ensure payment goes directly to the artisan business while allowing brands to develop a strong direct partnership. Nest also advises these brands, including Cienne, FEED and Beulah London, with best practices for identifying and collaborating with artisan partners. Brand employees can support Nest on a more personal level by providing their consulting services pro bono through the Professional Fellowship Program, matching promising artisan businesses with high-level professionals, such as brand strategists, designers, photographers and financial planners, for mentorship projects. These professionals can travel to artisans’ home countries or simply provide mentorship remotely from their own desks.
In addition, Nest launched its Standards for Homes and Small Workshops in December 2017 at the United Nations in partnership with a steering committee anchored by Target, West Elm, PVH, Patagonia, Eileen Fisher and The Children’s Place. “The Nest Standards are part of a training-first program designed to set artisan businesses up for success and each standard maps to remediation and further training that Nest is able to implement,” says van Bergen. “Our goal is for assessment to be a springboard to change, not an end in itself.”
Learn more about Nest in our interview with Founder and Executive Director Rebecca van Bergen and by visiting the organization’s website at buildanest.org.
Images courtesy of Nest.
xx Alex
This article was originally published in RANGE Magazine Issue Nine.