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Regional stories
Genesis and Our Future
The origin of LOJA SOL
Brazil
LOJA SOL, meaning “Sun Shop,” was born from a trip to Brazil. In the Amazon region, women crafted earrings from rubber, a locally available material with a distinctive connection to the area. Açaí and other local seeds became vibrant details in jewelry shaped by the resources, traditions, and creativity of the community.
As I continued to travel, I found locally crafted earrings in Brazil, Armenia, Taiwan, Mexico, Egypt, Chile, Argentina, Jordan, Greece, and Morocco. In every country, the craftspeople brought their own stories, materials, and cultural influences to the work. Those details were not interchangeable, and that was exactly what made each piece meaningful.
LOJA SOL brings these earrings and their stories to people who might not otherwise encounter them. Each piece offers cultural connection with a personal touch while supporting the curators and craftspeople whose work is locally sourced and rooted in place.
Local materials. Distinct traditions. Wider connection.LOJA SOL shares handcrafted earrings while honoring the people, places, and cultural knowledge behind them.
Our first regional focus
Ethiopia
Ethiopia faces a convergence of pressures that place child well-being at risk. Maritime blockades and disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb have severed critical fertilizer supply chains, compounding agricultural shocks associated with El Niño and ongoing conflict.
These combined pressures threaten children’s rights and protections under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.
Community-led response
Our adaptive framework emphasizes decentralized coproduction, enabling communities and local partners to shape solutions together.
Learn and adapt
Problem-Driven Iterative Adaptation, or PDIA, creates continuous learning loops so interventions respond to changing needs, emerging risks, and local evidence.
Protect close to home
Community protection hubs bring coordination, practical support, and child-centered safeguards closer to the people who need them.