Breathing new life into pre-loved sarees

Young Indians (Yi) Trivandrum has launched ‘Saree to Sanchi,’ a flagship climate change campaign for transforming pre-loved sarees into eco-friendly marathon bags for the Kovalam Marathon 2026 that it organises.

The campaign was officially launched during the ‘National Climate Summit’ at Auroville, Puducherry.

Through ‘Saree to Sanchi,’ Yi chapters across the country will mobilise members and communities to donate pre-loved sarees, giving them a new purpose while promoting sustainable living, encouraging textile reuse, and reducing fabric waste.

Collected sarees will be centrally processed by the Yi Trivandrum team and distributed to rural women self-help groups and women from fishing communities via a non-governmental organisation Sustera and the National Career Service Centre for Differently Abled (NCSCDA) for stitching. These groups will transform the sarees into handcrafted marathon bags, creating livelihood opportunities and generating additional income for underserved communities.

The initiative is expected to become one of the largest community-led textile reuse campaigns undertaken by Young Indians, bringing together environmental responsibility, women’s empowerment, and social inclusion under a single national movement, a statement from the movement said.

The campaign aims to collect sarees from women leaders, entrepreneurs, professionals, artists, educators, and changemakers from across India.

The collection drive will continue till August 1, after which the bags will be handcrafted and made ready for distribution during the Kovalam Marathon 2026 on September 13.

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