By Laura Alioravainen and Marjut Valtanen
Team Leaders, Art in Tanzania (Originally published on Sep 9, 2013)
When you pass between rows of small stores and boutiques selling imported shoes and clothes from Asia, alongside the pirated DVD vendors, you can find a true gem on the streets of Dar Es Salaam. Behind the red gates exists Wonder Workshop. This craft shop was founded in 2005 by Paul Joynson-Hicks, and its business model is pure genius.
Starting with three employees, Wonder Workshop was making art out of scrap metal. Currently, the organisation employs 42 Tanzanian nationals with various disabilities. The brilliance of Wonder Workshop lies in the ability to see resources and potential that others so often overlook. Here, used products and trash, typically scrap metal, wood, glass, and plastic, from the streets get a new life in beautiful forms, such as greeting cards, jewellery, art, toys, and many other ways that our imagination can’t reach. The employees of Wonder Workshop say their inspiration comes from the natural beauty and wildlife of Africa.
Every year, there are about a hundred new applicants to work in the Wonder workshop and get off the streets. A valuable asset to the workshop’s development and expansion is collaboration with volunteers and interns from all over the world. Volunteers can use their education and know-how to help develop new products. Volunteering here is also a great opportunity to work with recycled material, truly test innovativeness with limited resources and learn the unique wonders of this workshop.
For more information, visit the workshop’s website: www.wonderworkshop.co.tz/
