Godavari Delta Lacemakers

India

In the Godavari Delta, a low-lying coastal area in eastern India, people struggle to overcome a variety of natural disasters-cyclones, heavy rains, tidal waves and flooding. Women in the delta region have been making lace for over 100 years. Before the cooperative was formed, the lacemakers were at the mercy of unscrupulous middlemen who exported the lace, keeping most of the profits for themselves. The cooperative offers hope and a sense of empowerment for 300 poor, mostly-illiterate women.