Recycled Soda Can Jewelry - Eco Art by the Disabled (GALLERY)

Most people know about fair trade coffee, but there are also fair trade artisans who stand to gain a better standard of living if what they produce fetches fair prices.  The Mombulu Workshop in Mombasa, Kenya is a group of disabled artisans who make some pretty funky jewelry out of recycled soda pop cans and wire.  They use pop can cut outs for the bodies of the little people they make. A whole string of pop can tops make a cool choker. The workshop’s motto is “Disability is not Inability”. They are able to provide for themselves and their families and receive adequate housing and education.

The Mombulu Workshop markets their wares through Ten Thousand Villages, which is one of the oldest and largest of the Fair Trade organizations. Ten Thousand Villages represent more than 100 artisan groups in over 30 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.