Clare Brett Smith Founder and Former President of Aid to Artisans (ATA), a USA-based international nonprofit.

Under her leadership from 1986 onwards ATA and its partners delivered critical product development, training and marketing services to 65,000 artisans in 41 countries and an additional 60,000 artisans received small grants. Seventy-two percent of these artisans were women. During this period, ATA’s sales efforts leveraged nearly $230 million in retail commerce, a testament to her ability to help reach artisans who were completely unfamiliar with export. She also helped secure ATA’s first major project in Honduras from 1984-1986, which eventually generated $15 million in U.S. sales. Prior to the project, no artisan businesses existed in the country.

Ms Smith was a member of the First Delegation of Artists and Craftsmen to the People’s Republic of China in 1977, and represented Haiti at the World Crafts Council meeting in Kyoto in 1978. Clare has received numerous awards, including a 2005 Decorative Accessories Industry Achievement Award. She has been asked to present her work at worldwide leadership conferences including the Leadership Conference on Conservancy & Development in the Yunnan Province, China in 1999 and the Maker and Meaning: Craft and Society international seminar in Madras, India. In 2002, she was the juror for UNESCO Crafts Prize for Latin American and Caribbean artisans at the International Craft & Design Fair in Mexico City. In 2006, she was awarded an honorary doctorate by Clark University. She is also a renowned photographer and teacher of photography. Her photos hang from museum walls and studio center exhibits across the country.