About Rising International

Rising promotes ownership of craft-based businesses by women in both impoverished areas of developed nations as well as in developing nations. Our focus is primarily on women in high risk environments such as those in refugee camps, those living with HIV/AIDS, homeless women, displaced immigrants, former slaves, or those in war-torn regions of the world.

Rising International Aims to End World Poverty

By selling their handmade crafts and sharing in their life stories, impoverished women reach out to the rest of the world, not for charity, but for a chance. Some of the items Rising promotes are traditional crafts passed down through generations, such as the  baskets made by Ugandan women who have lost their children to AIDS, while others are new craft lines created for the Western market such as the silk purses which are woven by widows in Cambodia.

To date, Rising has helped women and their families in 45 countries move toward a more sustainable livelihood.

Crafts are purchased directly from the artisans with the assistance of local and international non-profits and NGOs. Rising has partnered with various organizations such as CARE International, The United States Peace Corps, and the UN High Commission on Refugees in order to directly support women's crafts groups in countries such as Afghanistan and Chad. These crafts are then sold through Rising Fair Trade Parties which are modeled after the popular and successful home party model used by organizations such as Mary Kay, Pampered Chef and Southern Living. By hosting a Rising International home party, you can help impoverished women all over the world rise out of poverty.

Rising strongly believes in monitoring and evaluating the impacts and progress in our partnerships with our artisans. As such, Rising partners with foundations and governments in providing research and consulting support to projects which further our mission of ending poverty in our lifetime.