Bloom and give

Bloom and Give was birthed from a vision Partha Raghunathan and Madhu Rajendran had after visiting Rajasthan, India to help a friend source block printed textiles. They instantly fell in love with the crafted work of local artisans who were using rich techniques of weaving, dyeing and sewing that have been passed down through generations. But what really stuck out to them was the gender disparity and inequity in the villages where the artisans lived.

Education is the only effective way for the girls to escape the endless cycle of childhood marriage, pre-teen pregnancy and abuse. This is where Bloom and Give really came to life. Partha and Madhu pair modern design with traditional artistry to create beautiful products for every day life - from scarves and handbags to kitchen linens (home good textiles and baby products launching soon!).

Through the sale of each product, they give back 50% to a program called Educate Girls that helps girls enroll in school, mentors and tutors them. This gives them the opportunity to be elected on the girls' councils in every school. This gives girls a voice, a leadership position in the school and training in "life skills". Opportunities they wouldn't have outside of this program. 

Bloom and Give also launched their own programs to aid in funding a school or group of girls in need: Mangala School and Doosra Dashak. 

1. Mangala School: serves 15 tribal villages in the southern state of Karnataka. Due to its location in a heavily forested region, the school faces a big problem of attrition - of students, and teachers as well. The school has been adopted by The Vanam Foundation, a non-profit organization that promote socially just and ecologically sustainable development. Vanam helps fund infrastructure projects, student retention efforts and helps with teacher staffing. We contributed to the development of a new classroom earlier this year.
2. Doosra Dashak ("Second Decade"): provides a second chance of education to rural area adolescents who are out of school. Through our partnership, we will provide full funding to a community center in Samrathpura village in Rajasthan for 1 year. This center will provide basic education and training in health, gender sensitivity, religious harmony and personal cleanliness to the nearly 100 out-of-school adolescents in the village, to help them take charge of their lives with dignity.

Their favorite success story from an impact their customers and company have had is that of a 13 year old girl, Suman. Here is her story: 

"This is the story 13-year old Suman, who was pulled out of school this past summer. One of our Bloom & Give program coordinators visited Suman's home to check in on her. Turns out she had other important things to do - take the sheep grazing, and care for her year-old infant sister. The deal negotiated with her parents was that she could come late to class (after grazing the sheep), and bring her infant sister to class 3 days a week. Suman loves to paint and draw and according to the Bloom & Give team that visited her, has an answer to all the questions in class!"

To receive 15% off your order, use coupon code GTGB at checkout! 
​www.bloomandgive.com

Be sure to post your favorite Bloom and Give item on social media and tag them and us (@goodsthatgiveback)! 
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