I just heard this clip on the radio and wanted to share.  She raised money on her own to travel 5,000 miles away to speak at the United Nations.  She is now 29 and lives in Canada.

Be sure to keep up with Via Nativa on Twitter!

Also, very soon Via Nativa jewelry can be found at this eclectic, very well edited,  yet reasonably priced shop, Brooklynski located at 351 Graham Ave in Brooklyn, NY.

Lastly, on Monday August 31st Via Nativa’s new hoop earrings or “Aros” earrings will be posted on Guffly.com.  Guffly is a brand new online store which features only one item per day based on the theme.  Via Nativa’s earrings were chosen because they fit the fair trade theme they will carry throughout the week.  You will be able to find them one day only for $21.99!  After that on Supermarkethq.com for $25.

Vianativa.com has been down for almost an entire month!  Thanks to a great friend it is back up and running!

During this time I’ve been posting on  Facebook.  Click the link to see photos and read about my past trip.  You’ll see photos from a gallery I lived at where every morning school kids were outside my window (a window which lead to another part of the gallery) every morning at 8 am.  And I’m not complaining!  It was amazing to be surrounded by creativity from morning ’til night!

Stay tuned for new jewelry on vianativa.com!

Here’s a link to the article I’ve meaning to blog about for a while. NY Times, 14 September 2008

Potters for Peace or Ceramica por la Paz is an organization based in Nicaragua which we have worked with to create tea cups, mugs and espresso cups. Last September Potters for Peace was mentioned in an article about a determined, yet incredibly practical man, Ron Rivera. Along with Potters for Peace he produced ceramic water filters to purify water in countries where a strong percentage of the population does not have daily access to clean, potable water. He lived in Managua, Nicaragua since the 80′s and passed away in early September.

Ron Rivera

Please read the article which I archived above. It goes into greater depth about his achievements and work with Potters for peace.

Martin Robleto of Potters for Peace

When we started our work with artisans exactly two years ago; Martin (pronounced, Martine) was one of the first we met and collaborated with in Nicaragua. Potters for peace is an organization which commenced as a result of the Iran Contra Affair. …Where to put it simply, pro-socialist or Sandanistas and anti-socialists or Contras fought against each other in the 80′s. It is estimated that 30,000 Nicaraguans died in the war. The organization is almost entirely run by Veterans of the “Contra” war in Nicaragua, hence the name Potters for Peace.

Here are some of the ceramics we have created with Potters for Peace:

'Artisan' Mugs: great for tea, or a nice cold beer Sold Out

Espresso Cups

Tea Cups With Filter

Paz,

Alessandra