>[!INFO] >This is one of the [[Ethical values]] of craft. >Editor: [[Sharon Tsang-de Lyster]] Extreme events such as disasters, wars, and displacement can be devastating, leading to loss of life, trauma, and uprooting people from their  homes. An estimated 117.3 million people have been currently displaced  because of war and conflict. Amid these events, crafts can provide solace, helping individuals experiencing displacement maintain their identity, sense  of belonging, access to resources, and livelihood, while also serving as a coping  mechanism for uncertainty.  ### Key Claims %% DATAVIEW_PUBLISHER: start ```dataview list summary from #claim AND [[Migrant and refugee value of craft]] ``` %% - [[Weft/Claims/Claim - Craft is a collective activity that forges trust and belonging.md|Claim - Craft is a collective activity that forges trust and belonging]]: Craft helps us connect with other people. When done collectively, it can be a sociable activity that fosters meaningful relationships involving trust and interdependence, which adds to our well-being and a sense of connectedness. - [[Weft/Claims/Claim - Craft is a means to keep traditions alive and evolving in new environments.md|Claim - Craft is a means to keep traditions alive and evolving in new environments]]: Displaced artisans have limited possessions and disrupted social networks. Rebuilding social and economic connections through craft offers pathways to keeping traditions alive and seeing new creative transformations of such traditions in new environments, with new networks and for new audiences. - [[Weft/Claims/Claim - Craft provides a livelihood with dignity through market access.md|Claim - Craft provides a livelihood with dignity through market access]]: Displaced artisans constitute a unique workforce who bring specific cultural and craft skills, equipped to earn a livelihood when given market access. Enterprises in the host countries partnering with them can benefit from the craft knowledge and skills they offer. - [[Weft/Claims/Claim - Craft provides a way of sustaining cultural attachments to home.md|Claim - Craft provides a way of sustaining cultural attachments to home]]: When one is away from one's homeland for an extended amount of time and unable to return, creating something tangible that symbolises home allows an active way of sustaining the psychological and functional attachment to one’s roots. %% DATAVIEW_PUBLISHER: end %% ### Case study - Craft enterprise provides recovery, social, economic and environmental values to refugees  [Tsang-de Lyster](https://www.thetextileatlas.com/craft-stories/silaiwali-upcycled-freedom-dolls-india.) (2020) highlighted a solid community formed among Afghan refugees in India at the Silaiwali workshop. The Delhi-based brand employs skilled Afghan needleworkers to turn textile wastes from the city’s garment industry upcycle into new handmade dolls. As fellow Afghans recover from their forced displacement, they are building a trusted community, establishing new livelihoods, and contributing to solving an environmental problem in the host country. Social innovations driven by enterprises, such as Silaiwali, are a great example of job creation for refugee artisans and provide cultural preservation opportunities, while turning a problem like excess textile waste into a readily available resource for product creation. As the number of displaced people continues to rise worldwide, it is essential to acknowledge their craftsmanship as a valuable contribution to the local contexts. Consumers supporting refugee-made crafts is an effective way to assist individuals in hardship, while the private sector incorporating refugee artisans in their value chain can be a crucial channel for specific ethnic cultures and crafts to sustain and thrive.