UN’s International Year of Natural Fibre celebrated at Olds College

by Rick Overwater on June 19, 2009

Students browse the dyed fibre at Fibre Week 2008

2009 has been officially designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Natural Fibre. So it is for good reason that you will find Olds College’s annual Fibre Week, taking place from June 26 through July 3, on the calendar of events at the UN’s official year-of-natural-fibre website.

Last summer, this growing event saw over 200 workshop participants from 14 US states and 8 provinces and territories converge on the beautiful summer campus of Olds College to network, learn and interact with each other as they received training from over 20 Fibre Arts instructors.

“There are countless reasons why the people within this industry are so passionate about natural fibres and why the United Nations would place such value on them,” says Otto Pahl, Olds College Fibre Week coordinator. “Not only are so many important items in our lives fashioned from these highly-adaptable, renewable substances but the impact and benefits of using natural fibres are felt in many areas including the agriculture industry that supplies them.”

The core of this event is the Master Spinner Certificate program, a six-level college credit curriculum that currently involves hundreds of students in North America and even Europe. The popularity of these classes has resulted in off-campus offerings of selected levels delivered to several locations in the United States, British Columbia and Saskatchewan. These offerings have only served to increase the attendance at Fibre Week.

With workshops, fleece shows and other related events, geared to all aspects of the Fibre industry from producers to finished products, there is something for everyone including a merchant mall and a Fibre Arts Camp for children.

Credit for the growth of this eight day event can be attributed to the large number of volunteer hours from the many fibre arts enthusiasts who assist with the planning of the eight-day event. “Their passion for this craft never ceases to amaze me,” says Pahl.