Article

Climate Adaptation Must Begin with the Artisan

2026-11-10 · By Sudha Mallupadi | Abhinara, Hyderabad

Sudha Mallupadi calls for climate adaptation to put artisans at the centre. Drawing on the realities facing handloom and craft workers, she highlights how extreme heat, water shortages and disrupted production threaten livelihoods, and urges businesses and policymakers to invest in resilient craft clusters, fair markets, responsible procurement and accessible adaptation finance.

Dear Leaders at COP31,

I work with artisans whose hands carry generations of knowledge into the present. Every woven length, every natural colour, every carefully made garment is a livelihood as well as a living tradition. But the climate crisis is now entering their homes and workshops.

Extreme heat makes weaving exhausting and unsafe, especially for women who work from home. Erratic rainfall and water shortages interrupt natural dyeing, washing and drying, delaying orders and incomes. Changes in agriculture affect the availability and cost of fibres and plant-based dyes. These are not distant environmental warnings. They are daily business realities for the people who make our textiles.

Handloom and traditional crafts belong at the centre of a sustainable, circular economy. Yet we cannot celebrate a low-carbon product while overlooking the woman struggling to produce it in unbearable heat. We cannot praise natural dyes without ensuring water security for the dyer.

I ask COP31 to back climate-conscious craft clusters with safe infrastructure, water-efficient technologies, renewable energy and dedicated adaptation finance. Support women’s livelihoods in weaving, natural dyes, garmenting and traditional crafts. Invest in textile-waste recovery, upcycling and responsible production. Above all, make these measures reachable for small artisan enterprises—not just large factories.

Businesses also have a responsibility. We need assured markets, fair prices, responsible procurement and durable commercial partnerships that go far beyond one-off CSR grants. Help us connect artisan-made products with customers in India and across the world, without compromising the dignity of their makers.

What gives me joy is seeing a young weaver choose to stay with the loom; a woman artisan earn her own income; a traditional skill find a confident place in a contemporary market. Those moments tell me that this work matters. They also tell me what is at stake.

My message is simple: when you speak of saving crafts and protecting the environment, remember the people who practise those crafts. Climate adaptation must begin with the artisan. Let COP31 turn that principle into finance, fair markets and real opportunity for the next generation.

With hope and resolve,

Sudha Mallupadi
Abhinara, Hyderabad