JULY 14, 2023 INSP SHEDIA from last page KK: We started with the simplest things. With the easier techniques. You feel and you see if it’s working or not. Initially we used this technique where we roll the paper into straws. These need to be straight and rigid. For those who found that difficult, we tried other things. Some didn’t take to any of those, but fortunately the ones who did make it can do all of the techniques extremely well. Katrin then talked through some of the common techniques they use. Here we have some strips of the magazine paper, and we take wooden or metal sticks (like a cocktail or kebab stick) and you roll any size strip of paper around the stick. It has to be tight around the stick. Glue the end and it becomes a straw. Then you use these [firm but malleable] straws to weave. Another is we shred the paper and blend it into a pulp. We mix it in a bucket like a smoothie! Then we dry it [using essentially a large sieve] and drain it. Then, using molds of shapes, of whatever you like really, you can use it to create things. That’s how we make bowls, clocks and even lampshades. Sometimes we use the pre-pulped strips, from the shredder, to create products. On some products, we like to show a bit more of the magazines, so you can see where this beautiful product really came from. Inside the mold, we put in strips of paper, then the pulp. So, even though the final product looks very nice and intricate, it is simple. If you have decent use of your hands, it can be done. Exactly. If you have the knowledge, and some help from say a shredder or a mixer, then you can do it. It’s not a mystic thing! We teach this — we go to schools; we have companies come here to learn. INSP: Not only is Shediart becomin turn increasing its ing a success in terms of its products, sustainability, but those involved are also earning even more of an income — and, crucially, other skills and self-esteem building — when leading workshops and classes on how to make these products. At the moment, two women (over the age of 50, as is the case with the majority of individuals involved in Shedia social projects), Christiane and Vanessa, are employed at Shediart. Christiane, now 61, has experienced drug addiction, prison time and has been otherwise socially excluded or unable to find employment. Watching her work and talking to her at Shediart, it is clear that she is not only happy with the income she is now receiving (she used to sell the street paper) but absolutely loves the work. “No matter how difficult an item is to make, I come to the work with love,” she says. INSP was lucky enough to sit in on a workshop held by Vanessa and Christiane at the original Shediart workshop (located in a small unit in a city centre arcade that lets out shops to local social projects). The attendees were refugee children, who were brought along by charity Caritas. The joy on both their and Christiane and Vanessa’s faces was evident throughout. KK: We even have the kids work with the pulp at an early stage — they will make bowls, pins and badges, and keychains by working the pulp into ice cube trays, letting them dry and then painting and designing them. Our idea ties together many things. There’s the obvious benefit of the income generated for those who do the work. In Greece, there is a big trash and environmental problem. So there is a sustainability aspect. The thoughts and impetus behind that part of it, we also want to spread. It is still a problem here, even if it is getting better. It shows that not only is Shedia an organization with a social conscience in terms of the actual paper, but generally throughout our projects. People come to our workshops and ask ‘what kind of paper can and should we use?’. We say absolutely anything — even pizza delivery advertisements you get through your letterbox. That’s why any street paper could do it too. Just try and use it. INSP: How about in terms of start-up costs, and what is the sustainability of the project now? KK: There was not much of a cost in the beginning. I was taking the workshops just until we had those with the knowledge to take them themselves. In the beginning there was no money involved. We had some funding to pay our employees until we started selling. But now since the production, there is no need for this support. We originally trained eight people fully to do this, and two are currently employed, but we have high hopes this will increase. Demand for the products and the workshops is high, but it’s still the beginning. Courtesy of the International Network of Street Papers GROUNDCOVER NEWS 15
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