This project began in 2003, with Mayan women in Guatemala who had been looking for ways to weave without the pain and fatigue that result from kneeling for long periods of time. The Maya people's search for a healthier way to continue using the traditional backstrap loom connects with their history of creativity and innovation. It has been a joy to work closely with them on a project so significant to their culture.

Women who use the bench report...

• pain, numbness and fatigue are no longer limiting factors;
• the flow of enjoyment and creativity has returned to their work;
  
• they are able to produce more with less effort, in less time, and with higher quality;
• pride in their identity as Mayan weavers has been enhanced along with increased hope for the future of their families and community.

The ergonomic weaving bench...

• provides a culturally, environmentally, and economically viable alternative to traditional working methods;
• rocks with the rhythm of the body and adjusts to fit the individual;
• is designed so that it can be made independently by the local people.
  

In 2007 I founded the nonprofit organization Synergo Arts. Through its closure at the end of 2012, Synergo Arts served as the education, consulting and design resource for the ergonomic weaving bench, to maximize the health, income, creativity, performance, productivity and craft quality of communities of backstrap weavers around the world.

The educational resources developed by Synergo Arts for making and using the bench are now permanently available on the Internet Archive, where they can be downloaded for free, as PDF and MP4 files in English and Spanish.

In Guatemala, the bench project has been left successfully in the hands of the local people. The Synergo Arts website will remain active through summer 2013.