Lynne Corvaglia with one of her start-up company's bags made of leather upcycled from old airline seats (Photos by Wearsos)
-- article by Alexa Battler, published March 7th, 2023
Lynne Corvaglia is on a mission to turn thousands of old airline seats into high-end leather products — and job opportunities for women in rural parts of Costa Rica.
Southwest Airlines replaces the leather seat covers on its planes every four years. To keep thousands of old seats out of landfills, the airline donates the leather to organizations that can transform it into new products. More than 12,000 seats are being upcycled into bags and accessories through a program dedicated to teaching women in rural Costa Rica leatherworking and business skills.
“There's a lack of access to opportunities here. We want to create a social enterprise that can create a positive impact in the lives of those working with us,” says Corvaglia, who graduated from U of T Scarborough in 2021. “Our strategy is to produce and activate local economies in Costa Rica.”
The seats are being stored in the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE), where Corvaglia lives and has helped spearhead the launch of a free workshop series. Hosted at CATIE, Corvaglia says the program is working to act as an “incubator,” teaching artisans the basic technical skills for leatherworking, along with entrepreneurship and personal and professional development. About 60 women have taken the first induction workshop.
“The program at CATIE is meant to be comprehensive. It’s not just about leatherworking. We all want to empower women,” Corvaglia says. “They can learn the skills to start their own businesses and use upcycling as a tool.”