Challenge: Remote Native American lands are often classified as food deserts. Many tribal members drive long distances, carpooling when they can, to purchase groceries due to limited local produce availability. Poor soil and consistent water availability can make home/community gardening difficult. In the Pacific Northwest tribal lands extreme heat, drought and wildfires made worse by climate change present further challenges to localizing food production.

Approach: A collaboration with tribal leaders, the local housing authority, and community members to secure a U.S. Department of Agriculture SBIR-I grant for a feasibility study showing the linkages among the climate, cultural, and economic impacts on indigenous food systems through installation of a proof-of-concept micro-farm. 


Services Provided:

• Macro scan (historical, social, economic, cultural)
• Stakeholder map and influence matrix 
• Funding sources directory
• Grant proposal, management and reporting
• Manage construction of two prefab geodesic domes
• Partnership ecosystem blueprint for future initiatives
• Stakeholder presentations

Value Co-Creation: Despite COVID-19 related challenges, the initiative launched on time with a well-received community-opening ceremony. The blueprint was presented at the InterTribal Ag Council in Las Vegas, Spring 2022. A follow-on agrivoltaics impact assessment ensures the micro-farm becomes net energy positive.

Highlights:

• Secured USDA SBIR-I grant
• Created two full-time jobs and multiple part-time jobs for tribal members during grant period
• Established, managed and then handed over the 1/3-acre micro-farm to the community
• Reduced food miles to walking distance
• Presented whole system approach at InterTribal Ag Council, Las Vegas, Spring 2022
• Achieved a net energy positive micro-farm through agrivoltaics

Challenge: Small hold farm-producers help preserve ancient and indigenous methods of cultivation and their farming practices can have direct positive impact on soil, landscapes, and efforts to sustain biodiversity. But too often they are not recognized nor provided with the necessary financial and marketing support for their work. On the island of Crete, grassroots organizations are well-placed to harness and scale traditional practices of cultivation but need better connections and visibility to expand their impact.

Approach: Engaged multiple organizations working across Crete in the circular design of two food products—carob-based spread and carob-based granola—and expanded the collective impact towards redefining food systems. 


Services Provided:

• Macro scan (historical, social, economic, cultural)
• Stakeholder map and influence matrix 
• Map of small hold farm-producers and their products across Crete landscape
• Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Big Food Redesign Challenge: pitch, story, application
• Concept paper “Regenerative Crete | Landscape-based Food System Redesign”
• Stakeholder presentations

Value Co-Creation: Not only is carob nutrient-dense and delicious, it’s a culturally significant ingredient to Cretan heritage and is an ideal ingredient for the island of Crete’s collective focus. Carob syrup—a key ingredient in both products—is cultivated from the carob tree, Ceratonia siliqua. On the island of Crete carob is already intercropped with wild or cultivated olive trees and variety of herbs using sustainable practices based on centuries of accumulated knowledge, techniques, and ancient wisdom, a continuation and adaptation of Minoan and Cretan agricultural heritage.

Highlights:

• Identified as best products in Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s Big Food Redesign Challenge
• Shortlisted for additional funding for small hold farm-producers moving from concept to pilot
• Showcased two concept circular food products in EMF’s digital catalog for retailers:
  • Highlighting ancient varietal food crops and their role in building nutrient-dense products
  • Upcycling key ingredients from carob spread remnants to carob granola
  • Designing 100% eco-friendly compostable product packaging
  • Showcasing a concept closed-loop reuse model of glass bottles in collaboration with the demand-side hospitality industry

Challenge: At the time of this initiative, 15% of all fabric in India was produced on handlooms and India was the seventh largest producer of textiles globally. And yet 57% of India’s 4.3 million handloom weavers were living below the poverty line despite their significant contributions to output. 
Adding to Indian handloom weavers’ economic challenges, being in the informal sector, occupational health and safety standards are also generally poor. For artisans in the handloom sector working with the same chemical dye ingredients as industry, close proximity to these chemicals presents acute risks: many of the over 10,000 chemicals used in textile production are known to be bioaccumulative, hormone-disrupting and cancer-causing. Behind agriculture, textiles are the second largest polluting industry globally, with textile dyeing in itself being a major pollutant of the world’s water supply. For artisan communities, risk to local water sources is real when effluent from dye runoff is not properly considered.

Approach: After collaborative R&D with local artisans and environmental experts on the ground, the living wage, fair trade, B-Corp social enterprise SLOWCOLOR was launched in the U.S. in 2011. Focusing on the U.S. wholesale market and small boutique stores, SLOWCOLOR worked to drive greater awareness of the challenge and foster connection between end consumers and artisan producers through the sale of exquisitely beautiful products —scarves, wraps, throws and blankets—all naturally dyed and handmade using premium linen and organic cotton yarns. 


Services Provided:

• Coordinated knowledge transfer and training for weaver cooperatives in natural dye techniques/innovations through the Handloom Weavers Service Center in Hyderabad, India
• Directly engaged weaver artisan groups to co-create collection of naturally dyed textiles using plant and mineral-based dyes from Indian heritage in premium natural and organic yarns
• Designed closed loop system for natural dyeing
• Articulated brand value proposition to wholesale buyers and end consumers to drive sales, to media to drive awareness and to impact investors in order to scout for capital
• Crafted business plan, pitch deck and all relevant investor materials
• Forged strategic partnerships with other ecosystem players and educational institutions

Value Co-Creation: Co-designed collection for loom interchangeability: By telling a simplified product story through a limited palette that incorporated cross weave designs, weft yarns could easily be swapped out to complete each product collection. Weaver cooperatives engaged continued their work for the local/export markets without interruption as SLOWCOLOR production never took up more than 15% of any cooperative’s total capacity. Weaver cooperatives engaged never carried costs of raw materials, supplies or inventory and set their own labor rates. Ordering and producing the bulk of inventory well ahead of season, allowed products to be made in the coolest months/during the most advantageous times for cooperatives.

Highlights:

• A multi-year effort, moving from R&D/proof of concept to six seasons of production/sales
• SLOWCOLOR products carried in over 120 stores across the U.S. and internationally in Japan, Canada and Australia
• Season-on-season product sales increase, achieving breakeven point EOY three

• Achieved ‘Ready to Invest’ stage with a premier impact angel network

• 4X increase in economic impact for handloom weavers engaged
• Direct capital improvement investments for weaver cooperatives engaged

• Revitalized natural dye recipes, eliminating the need for heavy metal mordants to bind color
• Promoted natural dye crops and natural fibers in agriculture and farming

• Closed loop system for natural dyeing proved both practical and effective
• Accolades:
  • Awarded Best of the World B-Corp Microenterprise, ‘Overall’ & ‘Environment’: 2014/2015
  • Sankalp Awards, Semi-finalist India, 2014
  • SOURCE Awards, Ethical Fashion Forum, 2012