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Wharton
Leadership Ventures
Leadership
Trek to the Himalayas
WORTHY PROJECTS AND ORGANIZATIONS TO
SUPPORT
IN
THE HIMALAYAN REGION
The
Projects
The Organizations
Making Donations
THE PROJECTS
A number of participants in
the Wharton Leadership Trek to the Himalayas have expressed interest in making
donations to worthy causes in Nepal and Tibet. After discussions with the American
Himalayan Foundation, the Himalayan Trust, and The Mountain Institute, we have
identified several worthy projects that will not replicate what's already being done,
that will fund things that are really needed, and that may be of particular
interest to Wharton leadership trekkers.
You can also make unrestricted donations
directly to the American
Himalayan Foundation and to The Mountain Institute for other projects they are
supporting in the Himalayas. The American Himalayan
Foundation and The Mountain Institute have non-profit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3)
status. Donations administered by
the Himalayan Trust go through the American Himalayan Foundation for tax
purposes.
1. Phortse School
Projects, Nepal
a. Building Rooms at
Khumjung High School for Phortse School Graduates
Among the 26 schools that
the Himalayan Trust has built for Sherpa education, Khumjung is the first school
and the only high school for the people of Khumbu. After primary education in
villages such as Phortse, students have to go to the Khumjung School to continue
their education. Parents are very
concerned as how to manage to send their children to Khumjung for high school. T
here are not enough accommodation facilities in the Khumjung school hostel for
every student. As a result, many students from Phortse drop out due to problems
of finding accommodation and getting support for food. Therefore, we have
focused on securing funds for this project, and two rooms have been constructed as an extension
to the Khumjung School Hostel to accommodate ten students from
Phortse. A letter of May 9, 2003 from the chairman and headmaster of
the Khumjung School regarding the Wharton contribution can be viewed by clicking
here.
The Ang Jangbu Sherpa and
Wharton School Hostel for the students of Phortse
School.
The hostel includes two sleeping rooms with five beds each and a shared kitchen.
Plaque on door to the Ang Jangbu Sherpa and
Wharton School Hostel
b. Repairs and
Maintenance of Phortse School
The Phortse School needs additional funds for maintenance
and materials to supplement the limited funding provided by the Himalayan Trust.
The building has been neglected and needs repairs. The school
committee and the Himalayan Trust will send pictures of the work that is done
with your money. The last Wharton trek discussed other ideas you might want to pursue, such as providing computers
for the school and even internet connections (but how feasible this would be
remains open to question!)
Donations earmarked on the
checks "for the Phortse Students Home in Khumjung" or "for
the Phortse School" can be sent to the American Himalayan Foundation
in the United States (either directly or through Mike, as detailed below) to be administered by the
Himalayan Trust in Nepal.
2. Support for the Nuns
of Deboche Convent, Nepal
The numbers of nuns at
Deboche, presently 18, has declined over the past two decades, and there is a
danger that its population will dwindle to an unsustainable level. Although
these women religious practitioners are connected with Tengboche, they have not
received the support that the monastery has. Some of the nuns still talk of a
committed donation from a French woman some years back, but this never
materialized.
Unable to support
themselves and with families that are unable to provide for them, many of the
nuns have to return to their farms and field to work. They have so little money
that they cannot pay for kerosene for lanterns and have to sit in the dark at
night. Their needs are simple. It is estimated that personal stipends or
allowances of only Rs. 500 ($7.70) per month for each of them will allow them
to purchase enough additional food, such as rice, daal, sugar and tea, to allow
them to remain at Deboche in relative comfort. That's $1,663 per year.
Alternatively, a mini-trust can be established: The annual interest on
investment of a principal amount of $28,000 earning 6% will be sufficient
to care for these aging nuns in perpetuity.
A member of one of the Wharton treks has been generously donating money to provide this support for the
nuns at Deboche. It would be very
helpful if others from the the treks could help out with this project so that
it doesn't rest entirely on that member's shoulders.
The practical matter of
administering and distributing these funds will be in good hands: funds can be
channeled directly from AHF through the Himalayan Trust in Nepal to the Kunde
Hospital, and from the doctors or staff of the Kunde Hospital to Ani Ngawang
Doka, the head nun. 100% of any
donations that are sent to AHF (either directly or through Mike) and earmarked "for support of
Deboche nuns" will reach these needy women.
3. Construction of
Teachers Quarters and Support of Monks and Teachers at Tengboche Shedra (Monks
College), Nepal
This project is a top
priority for the Tengboche Rinpoche. The shedra or monks college will have a
large classroom and quarters for lama teachers. Tengboche needs funding to
purchase building materials this fall and begin construction in the spring of
1999. Funds will also go to provide food for the monks and teachers. Because of
lack of adequate housing, Tengboche has had difficulty retaining learned lamas
who have come to teach at the monastery. The shedra would alleviate this problem
and set Tengboche on the road to becoming a vibrant center of Buddhist learning
in Khumbu.
The project has received
partial funding from people in Singapore and from the Monastery itself but needs
an additional $4,000 to $8,000. Ang Rita of the Himalayan Trust is setting up a
special bank account in Kathmandu for the monks college so that the funds will
be accountable and used for that purpose only.
Because of its fame and
situation on the route to Everest, Tengboche has received a lot of foreign
funding, but almost all of it has gone to rebuilding the temple after the fire
and installing electrical and water systems. Without the transmission of
learning and a living tradition via a college such as the shedra, the Monastery
will degenerate into a mere tourist attraction and fossilized relic of the past.
Donations earmarked on the
checks "for the Tengboche Shedra" can be sent to the American
Himalayan Foundation in the United States (either directly or through Mike) to
be administered by the Himalayan Trust in Nepal.
THE ORGANIZATIONS
Here is general
information on the American Himalayan Foundation and The Mountain Institute,
along with their addresses for sending donations directly and getting additional
information. The Himalayan Trust was established by Sir Edmund Hillary to help
Sherpas and is managed in Nepal by Ang Rita Sherpa. Donations to be administered
by the Himalayan Trust can go through the American Himalayan Foundation.
1. The American
Himalayan Foundation (AHF)
People in the remote
regions of the Himalayas often live without basic health care and education.
Infant mortality is high. Literacy rates are low. Economic pressure have forced
environmental degradation. And traditional ways of live are in danger of
disappearing.
The American Himalayan
foundation was founded in 1979 to respond to some of these pressing problems. We
began our work with the remarkable Sherpas of Nepal, answering their pleas for
education with school and scholarship. We have since responded to similar
requests in Ladakh, Bhutan, Pakistan and Tibet. In Dharamsala, India, we work
closely with the Dalai Lama's government-in-exile to help Tibetan refuges in
their difficult struggle to survive. Over time, we have expanded our focus to
include health care, cultural preservation and environmental conservation.
Within these four areas, AHF supports projects that are on a human scale and
that directly benefit people who live in each region. We deeply respect the
Himalayan community, our projects respond to their priorities. This
responsiveness characterizes everything AHF does. The Himalayan people are our
partners, they initiate direct and manage our projects to the fullest extent
possible.
The AHF supports and funds
projects directly. We also join with other organizations in larger, cooperative
endeavors. But in every case, AHF projects involve local commitment and
community participation. Examples
of AHF projects include:
Education
Providing schools has
always been central to the Foundation's work. We support a wide range of
educational programs throughout the Himalayan region that benefit children
teenagers and women who often otherwise would not have a chance to receive and
education. We built Kanchenjunga Tibetan Schools in eastern Nepal and Korphe
School in Pakistan. We support Tibetan Children's Villages, where in 17 location
throughout India and Nepal, 10000 refugee children learn to be citizens of the
world while remaining grounded in their own culture and language. AHF supports
the Soga Transit School for Tibetan refugee youth in Dharamsala, the Nepal Youth
Opportunity Foundation in Kathmandu and Child Haven in Bhaktapur. We sponsor the
Manakamana Women's college Fund in Nepal and the Tibetan Women's Scholarship
Fund to support dedicated students with scholarships in health care, education
and environmental sciences.
Health
Care
Health care is one of the
most basic and pressing needs for many of the Himalaya. AHF works to provide
this care as effectively and compassionately as possible, even in remote
regions. We have helped build the Hospital and Rehabilitation Center for
Disabled Children in Kathmandu, where Dr. Ashok Banskota, a world renowned
orthopedic surgeon, enables crippled, destitute children to lead new healthy
lives. The Foundation has supplied mobile clinics in Tibet, vaccinations in
Bhutan and health outputs in Mustang. Together with SEVA the AHF funds eye camps
that perform sight saving cataract surgery in remote hill areas of Nepal and
Sikkim.
Environmental
Conservation
With Sir Edmund Hillary,
the Foundation has planted a million trees in Solu Khumbu (Nepal) and sponsored
micro hydro projects to reduce wood consumption. We help build clean water
projects and fund appropriate technology, cooking and heating efforts. New funds
have been provided for the Gangotri Conservation Project at the headwaters on
the Ganges River in Uttarkesh, to clean up and preserve one of Asia's most
sacred sites. We also support the Jajarkot Permaculture Project in western
Nepal, which gives farmers hands on training in sustainable agriculture.
Cultural Preservation
The AHF is fully committed
to preserving the Himalaya's multi- cultural heritage from the restoration of
sacred sites to the construction of a traditional Tibetan woodblock printing
press. The AHF helps provide the dignity of decent shelter for Tibetan refugees,
especially the indigent and elderly. We also give a hand to the Drikung Kagyu
Bakery in a Tibetan Settlement in Dehra Dun, where Tibetans can acquire useful
skills and become more self-sufficient. Regional Trusts The Foundation is
involved in several regional trusts that provide a variety of services for
people in particular parts of the Himalaya. In long-standing partnership with
Sir Edmund Hillary and the Himalayan Trust, we build and maintain schools,
hospitals and monasteries in the Solu Khumbu region of Nepal. In conjunction
with the Annapurna Area Conservation Project, AHF restores monasteries, builds
schools, provides health care, and develops irrigation and micro hydro projects.
We also work with the Sherpa Trust in Darjeeling which offers education and
health care for the Sherpa people.
For copies of brochures,
additional information, and to make donations directly contact:
American Himalayan
Foundation
909 Montgomery St, Suite 400
San Francisco, CA 94133
Telephone: (415) 288-7245
Fax: (415) 434-9960
e-mail: ahf@himalayan-foundation.org
website: http://www.himalayan-foundation.org
2.
The Mountain Institute (TMI)
The Mountain Institute
believes that mountains can serve as inspiration, conscience, and model for
community-based conservation. Remote mountain regions are some of the last
bastions for globally-significant biodiversity and indigenous cultures. They are
critical water towers for much of our Earth's fresh water supplies. The Mountain
Institute is deeply committed to conserving these mountain environments and
cultures while helping to improve mountain peoples’ livelihoods through
community-based conservation and enterprise programs.
The Mountain Institute
implements programs in the oldest, longest, and highest of the world’s
mountain ranges -- the Appalachians, Andes, and Himalaya -- as well as through
global initiatives such as the Mountain Forum and Sacred Mountains. Our programs
use community-based participatory approaches, building on indigenous knowledge
and wisdom. We work directly with local partners to build on their strengths and
capacities, help them develop effective strategies, and then share these models
and successes across international boundaries in promotion of the global
Mountain Agenda.
Himalayan Programs of
The Mountain Institute
Since the mid-1980s, The
Mountain Institute has been introducing innovative models of participatory
protected area management and conservation-linked enterprise development in the
Himalayas. With six of the world’s highest peaks located within its project
areas, The Mountain Institute empowers local communities to conserve some of the
richest cultural heritage and biodiversity in the world, including the snow
leopard, Himalayan black bear, and hundreds of bird species. The Mountain
Institute builds local capacity in community and enterprise development,
conservation management, applied research, and policy improvement. The
Institute's Himalayan programs include the following:
Nepal- Makalu-Barun
Conservation Program
In 1988 The Mountain Institute established a
partnership with the Government of Nepal to create and implement the Makalu-Barun
National Park & Conservation Area east of Everest. The Makalu-Barun
Conservation Program integrates conservation with development through programs
that empower the 32,000 local inhabitants to plan and manage their resources in
collaboration with the Government of Nepal/Department of National Parks and
Wildlife Conservation and local private organizations. This program has served
as a model for community-based biodiversity conservation on national, regional,
and global levels.
Nepal-Langtang
Ecotourism Project
Located in the central
Himalayan mountain range northeast of Kathmandu, Langtang National Park and its
southern buffer zone region, Helambu is the 3rd most visited trekking
destination in Nepal. Tourism in Langtang is based on trekking and
mountaineering and provides the primary income for many communities in and
outside of the park area. Working in partnership with the Government of Nepal
Department of National Parks & Wildlife Conservation, villages, and local
entrepreneurs, TMI is assisting communities to find income generating
opportunities from tourism while improving the management of its impacts on the
environment and local culture. Training programs for villages and lodge owners
focus on improvement of tourism service standards and facilities, and organizing
community ecotourism management committees. The Langtang Ecotourism Project has
been successful in reaching local clients and seeing results in community
self-initiated resource and cultural conservation activities such as regular
trail cleaning, tree plantations, cultural dance performances, and toilet
construction.
India-Sikkim
Conservation and Enterprise Project
The Himalayan state of
Sikkim which was only recently opened to tourism, is one of the two most
biodiverse areas in India. Sikkim contains the world's third highest mountain
peak, Khangchendzonga (8,586m) which is revered as the protective deity of
Sikkim and renowned for rhododendrons, diverse flowering plants, birds and other
wildlife. Threats to Sikkim's biodiversity include agricultural land conversion,
road construction, over-collection of forest products and fuelwood collection.
To counter these threats
and to build on the opportunity to provide benefits to local communities, the
project team is working with a local association of trekking businesses and
local communities to strengthen community-based tourism opportunities at three
sites around Khangchendzonga National Park. This project is particularly timely
as the state government is eager to promote tourism through the development of
policies that minimize the problems that neighboring states have experienced as
a result of the rapid development of the tourism sector. Project collaborators
and staff have made major strides in training for income generation, capacity
building for conservation, biological monitoring and promoting policy dialogue
in conservation and ecotourism development.
Tibet-Qomolangma
Conservation Program
The Qomolangma Nature
Preserve was established in 1989 through a TMI initiative to conserve the unique
environment and culture of the region around Mt. Everest in the Tibet Autonomous
Region of China. The Preserve is notable as the first nature preserve in China
to include people, cultural heritage and international involvement in the
planning and management of the park. The Qomolangma Nature Preserve adjoins
three national parks in Nepal and is inhabited by over 72,000 Tibetans. TMI
works with the Government of the Tibet Autonomous Region, scientific
institutions and local people to develop Master Plans for management and
tourism, biodiversity databases, community programs for natural resource
management and increased incomes, training programs, and conservation of
cultural heritage.
Tibet-Peak Enterprise
Program
Developed in late 1996,
this program supports the responsible creation and growth of Tibetan business
enterprises by providing access to capital, training, and technical assistance.
Working in partnership with the Federation of Industry and Commerce of the Tibet
Autonomous Region of China, this new program is developing local capacity to
support the small but growing, private sector as an engine for indigenous
development. The Peak Enterprise Program is developing a model for a loan
program with associated business services, which incorporates environmental and
social concerns. Once established, it will be a self-supporting financial and
business services program which will enable the local people to improve the
quality of their lives and environment.
For copies of brochures,
additional information, and to make donations directly contact:
The Mountain Institute
245 Newman Avenue
Harrisonburg, VA 22801 USA
(540) 437-0468
Fax: (540) 437-0494
e-mail: summit@mountain.org
website: http://www.mountain.org
MAKING DONATIONS
If you wish to make a
donation, you can mail your checks to the Wharton School for forwarding to
the organization and project that you have decided to fund.
If you wish to remain anonymous or keep the size of your contribution
private, we will not reveal your name nor how much you have given.
Mail your donation check to:
Jeff Klein
Associate Director, Wharton Leadership Ventures
Huntsman Hall G37, Wharton School
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6340 U.S.A.
The check should be made
out to the American Himalayan Foundation or the Mountain Institute, and the
specific purpose (e.g., "Phortse Students Home") should be noted on
the check.
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