A weaving programme rebuilding the wool chain in Van

Habertürk reported on 5 August 2026 on İlmek İlmek Anadolu, a weaving programme run at the Van Maturation Institute with support from Turkey's Ministry of National Education. Working with master instructors, participants reproduce carpet and kilim patterns from the provinces of Van, Hakkari and Bitlis using looms and natural dyes. Beyond carpets, the looms also produce bags, cushions, covers and tent components. Deputy director Çiğdem Çiftçi frames the aim as preserving weaving culture and passing it to the next generation.

A second strand of the project addresses raw material. Under an initiative called Norduz Weaving, wool from the region's Norduz sheep is collected, washed, carded and turned into higher-value textiles. That wool had largely been going to waste, which suggests the problem was never scarcity but a broken processing chain. Most craft revival schemes start at the product end and stall at supply; this one attempts to hold the whole sequence, from fleece to finished piece, inside a single programme.