MESH (Maximizing Employment to Serve the Handicapped) is a nonprofit organization that works with people with disabilities, many of whom are former leprosy patients. MESH provides training, marketing and exporting for numerous member groups. Increasingly, they are hiring people with disabilities to give administrative leadership. MESH works with leprosy colonies and rehabilitation workshops in villages all over India, ensuring fair wages. Established in the 1970s and registered in 1981, MESH was founded to provide opportunities for disabled people and their dependents, especially those affected by leprosy. Their goal is self-sufficiency for artisans. MESH is a fair trade company that exports products to fair trade organizations around the world. Ten Thousand Villages has purchased products from MESH since 1999.
