OUR TEAM
MEET THE ARTISANS
" I can do everything ", she says with a smile.
Mrs. Ya is one of the first artisan's who joined MANAVA. She has extensive experience in weaving. The precision and quality of her work is astonishingly beautiful. Ya is one of our teachers.
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There are twenty four rural artisans women who we are currently working with from Krobey Riel village, located ten kilometres from Siem Reap city, Cambodia.
Mrs. Long Ya
We empower these artisans to build a sustainable income from their craft
Nen
Yuh
Sina
Yourn
Lina
Noun
Sarin
Kalai
Joht
Sokkin
Sokkom
Srey
Lohn
Ya
Vuet
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THE FOUNDERS
MANAVA was founded in 2016 and is a social enterprise created to support rural Cambodian artisanal women for a stable and sustainable future. The founder is Ka-Lai Chan, a Dutch designer with Asian roots who has worked for 10+ years with renowned international design brands. Co-founder Baraing Tho is a local Khmer man who has an impressive background working with several creative NGO’s within Cambodia. Together Ka-Lai and Baraing are currently working closely with 24 female artisans, all of whom are living in Krobey Riel village located just 10 km outside of Siem Reap.
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Ka-Lai utilizes her professional and educational design background to mentor these artisan women in order to empower their creativity and knowledge, thus sharing this ancient craft by adapting it to the demands of the modern market. MANAVA translates Sanskrit to humankind and intends to bring people closer to each other by introducing Cambodia’s culture and ancient crafts to consumers all over for a more ethical and sustainable world.