I LOVE Global Mamas! (Part 1)

While researching to write my Fund for Teachers grant, I learned about an amazing NGO (non-governmental organization) called Global Mamas, but I had no idea how deeply it would impact my trip. Global Mamas was started in 2003 by two former Peace Corps volunteers to promote the sustainable livelihoods of women in Ghana by finding local and export markets for their products and assisting them in managing their growing businesses. It has quickly grown to be a huge success--last year they exported $1 million in products! I knew I wanted to connect with them and perhaps tour their facilities, but in reality, I've been able to gain priceless experience over the past several days through participating in workshops and talking with the women behind Global Mamas.

In Cape Coast/Elmina, I arranged two workshops through Global Mamas: batik and Ghanaian cooking. The workshops were both private, and I spent the day working side-by-side with Mary for batiking, and then Eli. I really appreciate how Global Mamas connects you directly with the artisans to work in their space, as they normally would, to learn their craft. It's not some tourist gimmick--it's the real deal, and the money goes directly to the artists.

I spent the morning with Mary, a local batik artist, in her workshop (a small wooden shack, probably about 8'x6', surrounded by housing). Here, she explained the batiking process and led me through all the steps. First, I selected my wooden stamps and she showed me how to dip it in the melted wax and shake off the excess to prevent drips. The wax looked brownish-orange, but she explained that it would turn out white. I then decided how I wanted to design my cloth and begun stamping. Once that was complete, I chose my color for dye (blue), and Mary helped me fold and dye my cloth. Then we laid it in the sun to dry a bit. Once the dye was set, we dipped it in boiling water to remove the wax from the cloth, and I was left with a beautiful blue and white batik! The batiking design is created because the wax resists the dye, leaving white wherever wax was stamped (same concept as when you draw with white crayon and then paint with watercolor over it). See photos below...

Derek and I then spent the afternoon and evening with Eli ("Ellie") who taught us how to cook two common Ghanaian dishes--red red and kalawole. Red red is made up of black-eyed peas, covered in a spicy tomato sauce creation, and it's typically served with rice. Kalawole (pronounced "keliweli") is fried, sliced plantain seasoned with salt and sometimes ginger and pepper. Both were delicious and, in combination with the grilled chicken she served, it was our best meal in Ghana so far! Hopefully when we try to recreate this meal at home it works, and we can have everyone over for a big Ghanaian feast! See photos below...

Probably equally as interesting and valuable as learning the crafts themselves, is having the opportunity to connect and converse with these inspiring women and learn firsthand about their lives and about Ghanaian culture and its many, MANY languages (I can't keep up...I learn a few words and am proudly using them, then we travel to a new city--even only an hour away--and its a different language!) On top of both of these women's great level of skill, they both are working without electricity or running water in their workspace. So, for both heating wax/water for batiking and cooking, it was all done over a coal fire with water carried from somewhere else. Makes it even more impressive, doesn't it?

More on Global Mamas tomorrow!