Yaal Fibre
In Tamil Jaffna is called ‘Yaalpanam’. When we developed the brand we wanted to create a unique brand name that represented the cultural diversity of the community and as a result we came up with the name ‘Yaal Fibre’ for the group.
Yaal fibre was a community group who extracted banana fibres from banana stems and manufactured extremely time-consuming products such as decorative items. Parallel to that a motorcycle importing company in Jaffna had an issue of polythene waste, which was once used as a cover when importing motorbikes to Jaffna.
I developed a fully recyclable composite material from waste plastic and banana fibre and then developed a marketable product range that can create a better livelihood for the community.
Training the community groups
Yall fibre group was made of eight women and two men. The Jaffna community was fragile in a way, as it is still recovering from a 30 year civil war. It was necessary to introduce new income methods as the daily income of this community was about 3USD per person.
The main product was hand made book and it was able to become the main income generation method. We were able to market the book and create several strong links so the community can daily earn about 15USD per person.
Additionally folders, menu cards, table mats, coasters and light fittings were developed experimenting with the material characteristics to gain an extra income and more attention to the community group and the material.
Design Considerations
- Technical feasibility based on the skill level of the community group
- Possibility to create an easy-to-follow manufacturing guideline
- Reduce the impact of mistakes while manufacturing by re-assemblable products
Products and materials developed with the group
