Aruna Project
Aruna is an impact-driven athleisure brand creating lifelong freedom to victims of human trafficking. By combining the best of a non-profit mission with a business mindset, Aruna provides economic empowerment through employment to restore dignity, well-being and independence in the Mumbai area.
Tom Rockwood
P&G Alumni Sponsor
Aruna is supported by a P&G alumni team, Tom Rockwood (pictured), Steve Simpson, Kathleen Grover and Dan Price — with over 85+ years combined P&G experience across distribution & logistics, manufacturing, and brand management..
This multi-functional team of P&G Alums provides Aruna outstanding leadership and service. Tom serves as Aruna’s Chief Operations Officer and Steve Simpson serves on the Aruna Project Board of Directors (Chairman – last 2 years).
“I’ve become much more aware of the many great organizations out there that help trafficked women gain employment. I don’t think there is any other organization involved in this type of work as comprehensive and globally connected as Aruna.” Tom Rockwood
The Aruna Project brings freedom through employment and holistic care for sexually exploited women. It creates functional luxury eco-friendly bags and accessories made by women freed from sex trafficking. In short, Aruna works to free, employ and empower women.
Aruna operates a training center in the heart of the red-light district of Mumbai. It establishes relationships with sex workers that lead to their entering the Aruna training center. There they receive a hot meal, trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy and financially incentivized work skills to provide employment opportunities and help bring their freedom. Once free, the women may join in transitional housing and Aruna’s Freedom Business, located 20 miles away from the red-light district. There they earn a living wage, receive retirement/healthcare benefits and ongoing counseling. They also can continue to develop their learned skills/trade which in turn can lead to employment opportunities elsewhere in the thriving Indian textile industry.
The 2020 P&G Alumni Foundation grant of $21,000 will contribute to Aruna’s implementation of an expanded employment preparatory program. As a result of the project 150 women will be trained, 34 new jobs created, and over 500 family and community members positively impacted. The grant will be the second awarded by the Foundation to Aruna. The first in 2016 supported a production capacity increase in Aruna’s Mumbai factory, training 100 women in the process and employing 50 more.
“Despair Turned To Destiny”
Aruna exists because sexual slavery exists. For Fatima and millions like her personal choice has been forcibly taken from them and life has become a matter of survival.
Being born into the brothels ensured that Fatima had little choice concerning the direction of her life. Seeing her mother’s abuse was a look into her own future. A future that no matter how much she sought to avoid, would inevitably come to pass. That is the definition of despair.
The despair all but destroyed her…. until the Aruna opportunity arose. Today, Fatima doesn’t live in despair. Quite the contrary, she is free, empowered, employed and her life is marked by hope and a brighter future.
“When I think about the future, I hope to help others the way I was helped.”
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