Ethical, Sustainable & Reliable

We are a social enterprise: aiming at empowering vulnerable women, caring about ethical sourcing. We are guided by our values for People and Planet. Join us to build a change, now.

Dao Ethical Gifts’ parent organization, Baan Dek Foundation (BDF), leverages its field expertise to empower the most vulnerable communities, building sustainable programmatic responses and gender-responsive approaches to improve the well-being of the most in-need families and children in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Because women are Daring, Ambitious, and Optimists, they can access opportunities to generate extra income by handcrafting your orders with Dao Ethical Gifts.

Women's Empowerment Project

BDF’s Women Empowerment Project empowers marginalized mothers to end cycles of poverty and violence. Vulnerable women receive work readiness coaching, financial literacy training, safe childcare solutions (e.g., access to public nurseries and schools), and upskilling training such as sewing.

Graph Dao

We promote the Women Empowerment Principles that drive our work by: boosting women’s economic empowerment, creating working opportunities among women, and building partnerships with the private sector.

When we met this single, young woman, she was in an extremely precarious situation. A mother of two small children, and with no income and no plan in mind, she was contemplating leaving her children behind in a shelter. Through coaching by Dao's team and upskilling sewing sessions she has become a Dao artisan and been able to take charge of her life.

Monitoring & Sharing our Impact

BDF conducts rigorous monitoring of the Women Empowerment Project on both short-term and long-term intervals against specific indicators to maintain consistency, standardize improvements, identify emerging issues, and highlight meaningful successes.

We also collect feedback from clients and producers to assess challenges and successes, which helps us to further develop the quality and compliance of our products as well as the efficiency of our production chains.

*Data from January - December 2023

Testimonials

  • Cindy Sirinya Bishop, UN Women Goodwill Ambassador Asia-Pacific

    “From the minute I met with the team from Dao, I was impressed with their professionalism and efficiency in meeting my requirements. They went out of their way to make sure my order was delivered on time and to my specifications. I was very happy with the products and loved being able to incorporate the efforts of this women empowerment initiative into my #donttellmehowtodress campaign. Will definitely be partnering with Dao Ethical Gifts again!”

  • Inês Caldeira, CEO, L’Oréal Thailand

    “Managing a leading company like L’Oréal brings additional responsibility. This is why we always want to give back to the local community where we operate. Dao Ethical Gifts was a great opportunity to share with our teams the extraordinary work you do at Dao."

  • Reuben Sady, Marketing Manager APAC, Amadeus

    "Dao has created corporate gift items for Amadeus on a number of occasions now. Each time, I am impressed by the quality of the gifts and the ease of communication. I would recommend Dao to any organization looking for ethical corporate gifts."

  • Nicky Wilkinson, Director of Philanthropy, Firetree TrustNicky Wilkinson, Director of Philanthropy, Firetree Trust

    "I was really impressed with the folders I ordered from Dao Ethical Gifts. The Dao team was professional, and they delivered high quality products on time. We received excellent feedback from our workshop participants. I would happily recommend Dao."

  • Rebecca Hill, Sr Manager, New Product & New Categories, LifeStyles

    “From the first day, I sent an inquiry to Dao Ethical Gifts the communication was clear and Dao did everything possible to met our requirements. The products were produced to a very high quality in a short period of time and everyone who received a gift at our company’s conference was really impressed and moved with the foundation.

Our Stars

"As a woman, Dao has changed my life for the better. Dao helped me out of a dark place by discovering my love for sewing and creativity: I can really be imaginative on the fabric! As a single mother, before Dao I was unemployed and couldn't send my kids to school. I am now able to provide food, a great education, and more quality time with my kids.”

M.S.

“Not only can I earn extra income from being a Dao artisan, but I also have the chance to learn new skills and share them with others in my community.”

V.

“Learning sewing and handicraft helped me realize how much I enjoy it. And now, I am able to buy milk powder for my daughter.”

P.

“The extra income I receive for producing Dao gifts helps me to provide food for my family. Now I can increase my savings and reduce my debts.”

S.

”In the future, I want to go back to my hometown in Myanmar, build a house, and bring my family together. Thanks to the Dao Women's Empowerment Project, I will be able to obtain new knowledge and use it to improve my life in the future.”

J.

“I want to learn to sew so I can use this ability to earn extra income. I am very happy to learn from staff with sewing expertise thanks to the Dao project. Dao is ready to support me and teach me more about how to sew."

F.

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