Moner Kaj
Connecting Lives, Skills & Stories Across Bangladesh
Moner Kaj brings together people with lived experience of mental health conditions and neurodivergence from across Bangladesh — from Dhaka's urban heart to Jashore's craft villages to Satkhira's climate frontline — connecting their unique skills, needs, and traditions into one supportive network.
Our Philosophy
Connecting People, Skills & Communities Across Bangladesh
Bangladesh is a land of extraordinary diversity — from the dense urban fabric of Dhaka to the lush agricultural plains of Jashore to the climate-vulnerable coast of Satkhira. In each of these places, people with mental disorders and neurodivergent conditions face unique challenges shaped by their geography, culture, and community. Moner Kaj recognises that a person recovering from psychosis in Korail slum has very different needs from an autistic artisan in rural Jashore or someone living with cyclone-related trauma in Satkhira. Our three hubs are designed to meet people where they are — with locally relevant skills, culturally meaningful crafts, and community-rooted support. What connects them is the shared belief that every person, regardless of their mental health experience, deserves dignified work, creative expression, and a sense of belonging.
The Landscapes of Bengal
Three Hubs, Three Worlds
Three hubs across three distinct ecological and cultural zones of Bangladesh — each with unique crafts, resources, and community strengths. Together, they form one connected network where artisans learn from each other, share skills across geographic and cultural boundaries, and work toward a single goal: dignified recovery and economic empowerment through heritage craft.
Korail Slum
Dhaka Hub
Rickshaw painting, creative therapies & cross-cultural skill exchange.
Explore Hub DetailThe Garden District
Jashore Hub
Jashore Stitch Nakshi Kantha, Patali Gur & Godkhali flower crafts.
Explore Hub DetailClimate Frontline
Satkhira Hub
Climate-adaptation crafts, natural resource harvesting & resilience training.
Explore Hub Detail
Urban Adaptation
Dhaka Hub
High-Density Urban Sanctuary
Located in the heart of Korail Slum, this Moner Kaj Hub is where persons with lived experience of mental disorders work together to create different types of craft products and learn skills to offer their services. Both online and offline courses are available to empower artisans and facilitate their clinical and functional improvement. We also design and deliver creative therapies to assess their effectiveness. The unique feature of this hub is large-scale rickshaw painting — a distinctly Dhaka art form — and the opportunity for artisans from different geographic areas and cultural contexts to work together, learn from one another, and build community across difference.
- Advanced noise-dampened creative workspace insulation.
- Harnessing deadstock textiles for beautiful patchwork crafts.
- Urban resilience and vocational training for slum communities.
The Garden District
Jashore Hub
Rich Craft Revival & Floral Abundance
Set in the Jashore district, world-renowned for its fine Jashore Stitch embroidery, this hub draws on the region's rich craft heritage. Jashore is also famous for Date Palm Molasses (Patali Gur) — rich, aromatic solid molasses harvested and processed during winter months — and Godkhali, which serves as the largest commercial flower-growing and supply hub in all of Bangladesh. The unique and important products from this hub are Jashore Stitch Nakshi Kantha, sharees, and other embroidered products that carry forward centuries of Bengali textile tradition.
- Fine Jashore Stitch embroidery revival and restoration.
- Seasonal date palm Patali Gur preparation with local growers.
- Dried floral crafts and organic essential flower oils.
Climate Frontline
Satkhira Hub
Climate Frontline Resilience
Located on the deep climate-frontline zone of coastal Bangladesh, Satkhira is highly vulnerable to salinity intrusion and cyclones. This hub focuses on climate-adaptation crafts using locally available natural resources, sustainable harvesting techniques, and emergency resilience training. Artisans here work with salt-resistant natural dyes, mangrove-friendly materials, and traditional weaving — transforming environmental challenge into creative opportunity.
- Extraction of salt-resistant natural dyes from local flora.
- Safe, elevated modular workshops designed as cyclone refuges.
- Sundarbans-inspired hand-woven reeds and natural fiber goods.
Our Living Heritage
Protecting Our Living Heritage
Guardians of Bangladesh's Cultural Fabric
Each Moner Kaj Hub is rooted in a place where centuries-old traditions are still alive — but increasingly fragile. Urbanization, climate change, and economic pressure threaten to erase the craft knowledge, oral histories, and cultural practices that define Bengali identity. Our hubs exist not only to provide dignified work for artisans with mental health experiences, but to actively preserve and promote the living heritage of each region.
Dhaka — Rickshaw Art & Urban Folklore
Dhaka Hub
Korail sits at the heart of Dhaka, where rickshaw painting — one of Bangladesh's most iconic folk art forms — thrives in narrow lanes. Our artisans learn and practice this vibrant tradition, keeping alive the storytelling murals of cinema heroes, rural landscapes, and mythological scenes that adorn thousands of rickshaws across the capital. Through this hub, urban folklore is not just preserved — it is given new life by new hands.
Jashore — The Thread of Tradition
Jashore Hub
Jashore Stitch is a centuries-old embroidery tradition passed through generations of Bengali women. Our artisans carry forward this heritage through Nakshi Kantha quilts and sharees, each piece telling a story in thread — of rivers, of harvests, of family. The hub also protects Jashore's identity as the gur capital of Bangladesh, where the ancient art of tapping date palms and crafting Patali Gur continues each winter, and as home to Godkhali's legendary flower trade.
Satkhira — Resilience as Heritage
Satkhira Hub
In Satkhira, where the Sundarbans meets human settlement, craft is survival knowledge. Weaving with golpata leaves, dyeing with salt-resistant local plants, building cyclone-ready structures — these are traditions born from generations of living alongside nature's extremes. Our hub ensures these climate-adaptation skills are documented, taught, and valued as the sophisticated cultural heritage they truly are — not just survival, but wisdom.
When we protect our crafts, we protect our stories. When we protect our stories, we protect who we are.
Inclusive Design
Every Mind is Welcome
How We Make Our Hubs Friendly for Persons with Mental Health Conditions & Neurodivergence
Every Moner Kaj Hub is thoughtfully designed so that persons living with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, severe depression, autism, and other neurodivergent conditions can feel safe, supported, and productive. We believe that the right environment does not just accommodate difference — it celebrates it as a source of creative strength.
Sensory-Safe Workspaces
Quiet zones with adjustable lighting, sound-dampened walls, and low-stimulation areas. Artisans can choose their comfort level — from collaborative open workshops to private focus rooms.
Flexible Pace, No Pressure
There are no rigid deadlines or production quotas. Artisans work at their own pace, with rest breaks built into the daily rhythm. Recovery comes first — productivity follows naturally.
Peer Support & Buddy Systems
Every new artisan is paired with an experienced peer mentor who understands lived experience. Buddy systems create trust and reduce the anxiety of entering a new space.
On-Site Mental Health Support
Each hub has access to trained mental health professionals who provide regular check-ins, crisis support, and creative therapy sessions — all integrated into the daily workflow, not separated from it.
Skill-Building at Every Level
Courses are designed for diverse learning styles — visual demonstrations, hands-on practice, step-by-step guides, and one-on-one mentoring. Both online and offline learning paths are available.
Community & Belonging
Shared meals, cultural celebrations, and storytelling circles create a sense of family. Artisans from different hubs connect through exchange visits, building friendships across geographic and cultural boundaries.
A hub is not just a workplace. It is a home for healing, learning, and creating together.
Our Courses
Skill-Building Pathways Across All Three Hubs
Dhaka Hub
7 Courses- • Rickshaw Painting (Traditional & Contemporary)
- • Textile Upcycling & Deadstock Design
- • Screen Printing & Block Printing
- • Creative Art Therapy
- • Basic Tailoring & Stitching
- • Digital Literacy & Online Freelancing
- • Small Business & Entrepreneurship
Jashore Hub
7 Courses- • Jashore Stitch Embroidery (Beginner to Advanced)
- • Nakshi Kantha Quilting
- • Sharee Embroidery & Design
- • Flower Arrangement & Dried Flower Craft
- • Date Palm Gur Processing & Packaging
- • Natural Dyeing Techniques
- • Product Photography & Marketing
Satkhira Hub
7 Courses- • Golpata (Nipa Palm) Weaving
- • Salt-Resistant Natural Dyeing
- • Mangrove-Friendly Material Craft
- • Cyclone-Resilient Shelter Building
- • Honey & Wax Processing (Sundarbans)
- • Climate Adaptation & Disaster Preparedness
- • Eco-Tourism Hospitality Skills
All courses are available both online and offline. Courses are designed for diverse learning styles with visual demonstrations, hands-on practice, and one-on-one mentoring.
Impact & Products
How Each Hub Transforms Lives and What We Create
From urban craft to traditional embroidery and climate-resilient materials, each hub is designed to meet the unique needs of artisans with lived experience of mental disorders and neurodivergence.
Dhaka Hub
Healing Through Urban Craft
In the heart of Korail, artisans recovering from psychotic episodes and severe depression find purpose through rickshaw painting and textile work. The structured daily rhythm of the workshop — morning warm-up, guided craft sessions, shared lunch, afternoon skill practice — provides stability that supports clinical recovery. Artisans build confidence, earn income, and reconnect with community after periods of isolation.
Key Products & Services
- • Hand-painted rickshaw art panels & canvases
- • Upcycled textile bags, pouches & accessories
- • Screen-printed t-shirts & fabric
- • Block-printed stationery & gift items
- • Custom tailoring & alteration services
- • Creative therapy workshop facilitation
Jashore Hub
Tradition as Therapy
In Jashore, artisans with autism and other neurodivergent conditions thrive in the repetitive, meditative rhythms of Jashore Stitch embroidery. The precise, pattern-based nature of Nakshi Kantha work aligns beautifully with the cognitive strengths of many neurodivergent individuals. Artisans who struggled in conventional workplaces flourish here, producing exquisite work while building social connections through the shared craft circle.
Key Products & Services
- • Jashore Stitch Nakshi Kantha quilts
- • Embroidered sharees & dupattas
- • Hand-stitched cushion covers & table runners
- • Fresh & dried flower arrangements (Godkhali flowers)
- • Patali Gur (Date Palm Molasses) — seasonal
- • Custom embroidery commissions
Satkhira Hub
Resilience Builds Resilience
In climate-vulnerable Satkhira, artisans living with bipolar disorder, PTSD from cyclone trauma, and chronic depression channel their survival experiences into craft. Working with local natural materials — golpata leaves, mangrove-safe fibres, salt-resistant plants — gives artisans a sense of agency over the very environment that once overwhelmed them. The hub also trains artisans in disaster preparedness, turning vulnerability into community leadership.
Key Products & Services
- • Golpata (nipa palm) woven baskets & mats
- • Natural dyed textiles & scarves
- • Sundarbans honey & beeswax candles
- • Handwoven jute home décor
- • Eco-tourism guided experiences
- • Community resilience training services