San Diego based company KAZI is making a big difference for artisans in Rwanda.

Based here in San Diego, KAZI is the largest artisan employer in Africa, with nearly 6,000 artisans who support nearly 25,000 dependents. The upscale collections including baskets, lighting, ornaments and more, are designed in the U.S., then created by by KAZI artisans in Africa - who are nearly all women - using locally sourced materials. Throughout the process, the artists become self-sufficient businesspeople, improving their economic situation, and gaining the dignity and sense of accomplishment that comes with it.

KAZI Co-Founder Alicia Wallace explains the KAZI philosophy that everyone deserves to make a fair wage to support themselves and those around them, no matter where they are in the world.