A Voice For the Voiceless

MISSION

The Advocacy Project seeks to help community-based advocates produce, disseminate and use information, and so become more effective advocates for human rights and social justice

Mariko Scavone and eHomemakers

After finishing a degree in Spanish from the University of Texas at San Antonio, Mariko took the next logical step. She went to Japan, where she lived in a rural village for two years.

After coming back to the US and getting over the shock of 20-ounce mocha frappaccinos and toilets without music, Mariko decided that it was time for graduate school. She is currently working toward a master's in foreign service from Georgetown University in Washington, DC.

Mariko will be trying to reinvigorate the Salaam Wanita project. This project advocates on the behalf of urban poor, and homebound women through the buying and selling of eco-baskets. Eco-baskets are hand-woven baskets and purses made from recycled magazines.

They are practical, unique and come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Through the creation and selling of these baskets, the project aims to break the isolation and poverty that threaten the women and their families.

Having worked with a similar operation only in Nicaragua and selling candles rather than baskets, Mariko knows that no business model from the pages of a text book can solve the logistical, staffing and marketing challenges that arise with any small business, let alone a social enterprise. She is excited to have the opportunity to get involved in a burgeoning social business.