Rania Salah Seddik established GebRaa in order to support marginalized local communities to be economically and socially empowered through supporting unique cultural green handcrafted production. GebRaa follows the Egyptian tradition of cultural production, handicrafts, and local traditional guilds who have survived for thousands of years. GebRaa also aims to support highly skilled talented workers in order to protect disappearing traditional Egyptian crafts while using natural resources with low environmental footprints.
GebRaa aims to create sustainable livelihoods, enhance the societal status of artisans, and promote environmentally-friendly solutions; as well as enable peasants to find employment in their own rural communities rather than having to move to Cairo. GebRaa works with and funds community development projects in different artisans’ communities in Suhag, Sinai, and other governorates to promote Egyptian culture and support cultural diversity. Bringing together fresh designers and highly skilled artisans to work on innovative designs with green local innovative materials as well as green solutions, it is also the first initiative to use wood made out of midrib of palm tree in manufacturing as the base of home decor line. Moreover, GebRaa is working on reviving Egyptian handicrafts through storytelling, videos, and media which will reflect on craftsmanship, fighting standardization, and reducing poverty.
GebRaa’s long-term goals include opening more local outlets and creating a reliable online platform that would cater to local and international needs of Egyptian handcrafted products. Through GebRaa, Rania continues to spread awareness on the importance of heritage.