In the summer of 2010, women in Uganda will start a paper-making business with start-up funds and support from a Nourish International Chapter at the University of Pennsylvania. The project is a collaborative effort among NACWOLA, Africa Rising, the student group, and a US volunteer. The idea for the business arose from the natural connection between US Scrap bookers and the Memory work that takes place with HIV positive women through NACWOLA, an Africa Rising partner.

Memory work aims at empowering HIV positive parents to support their children to survive parental loss with less trauma. This is done through documenting and storing important family history and precious childhood memories for future use by the children in Memory Books.

A limiting factor in enabling many parents to create Memory Books for their children is the lack of availability and high cost of quality paper needed for the books. To fill this gap, 10 HIV positive women will be trained by an African paper-maker and begin making paper from recycled and local products for Memory Books and Scrap booking. Markets for the paper will be identified in both East Africa and the US.

The role of Africa Rising is to facilitate connections among groups within our network who have complementary dreams and assets. The collaboration on this project is a success for Africa Rising and for the women whose lives will be changed through running the business. They will experience the multiple benefits of contributing income to their families and supporting the Memory work that impacts the lives of many families throughout Uganda.

If you’d like to receive updates on this project or learn about how you can be involved please contact us.