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Wednesday, 10 October 2012 01:06 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The Sri Lanka Design Festival 2012 edition will showcase the designer talent from northern Sri Lanka, a region that has catapulted to a GDP growth of 27% in the last year and is now entering the mainstream economy of the country post a thirty year old war.
Whilst most people in the Northern Province are returning to the industries of fisheries, agriculture and animal husbandry that were their livelihoods at one time, a new trade is also taking shape under the palmyrah palm shades.
A group of designers from local and international backgrounds, led by Sri Lanka’s international design campus AOD, is working 
hand-in-hand with palmyrah weavers in the north.
They’re working together to make high-end designer palmyrah basketry and accessories for export and local markets.
This project, known as DFSD (Design for Sustainable Development – www.dfsd.lk) is a not-for-profit initiative driven by AOD design campus.
The project aims to provide better livelihoods for northern artisans by improving their traditional crafts with design integration.
To achieve this, AOD commissions international and local product and accessory designers who are competent in international market trend knowledge to work with artisans and produce high-end products.
With the Government of Sri Lanka’s recognition of ‘design’ as a value-addition and a tool for our nation’s economic development in the budget of 2012, this project promises to yield great results for SME economies.
DFSD will be featured at this year’s Sri Lanka Design Festival (SLDF), as a living example of the massive potential held by creativity as a tool to induce industrial development. Under this, a fashion show and exhibition –both produced and curated by AOD’s international design team – will be held at the breath-taking heritage site of the Colombo Museum grounds.
The ‘South Asian Craft Symposium’ will be held for the first time, to lead the world towards a conversation in integrating creativity into craft, using projects like DFSD as a prototype.
SLDF was founded by Sri Lanka’s international design campus AOD (www.aod.lk) and is supported by the Ministry of Economic Development, EDB and JAAF as the key stakeholders, SriLankan Airlines as official airline, Mount Lavinia Hotel as official host, MAS as the main sponsor of the Sri Lanka fashion and apparel awards, TradeCard as official software partner, Hellmann Worldwide Logistics as official freight and fashion logistics, Textured Jersey as official fabric partner, Coats Thread as official thread partner and PrintCare as official printer.
The British Council and Goethe Institut are also supporting SLDF as knowledge partner and international programme partner respectively while WGSN and JustStyle are promoting the festival internationally as the international media partners.
SocialMidea is the official social media partner and Cheryl Gooneratne is the official hair and makeup partner for the festival.
For registrations, tickets and more information, reach Sri Lanka Design Festival through its official website www.srilankadesignfestival.com or call 11 5867772/3 or visit the festival secretariat at 29, Lauries road, Colombo 4.
