Dukuh Village is situated on the slopes of Gunung Agung mountain, Bali with very little rain. The land here is dry and arid. Right below the village is Tulamben Bay, a favorite diving spot in Bali. Most of the villagers in Dukuh are farm workers whereas the young villagers are more interested in working in Denpasar. Conservation International works with the community to restore the landscape of the village forest through, among other’s planting Agave Sisalana in a bid to reduce land erosion and sedimentation of the Tulamben Bay.
We began working with the women in Dukuh as CI Indonesia consultants, delivering a workshop on how to create various woven goods from the agave sisalana fiber. The workshop enabled women to make products such as handwoven and plaited carpets, baskets and placemats. We then assisted them to develop a business plan for these products. In this process we realized that the women of Dukuh would have difficulty in terms of harvesting fibers in a sustainable way, because the goods used too much fibers to make. There were also many other challenges identified throughout the value chain. We decided to explore the possibility of developing minute handcrafted goods such as jewelry gift wraping items, and various home decoration accessories to ensure profitability and protection of nature.
