The Terma Foundation
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The Terma Foundation is a nonsectarian humanitarian organization whose creative programs combine indigenous and global knowledge to respond to the enormous health crisis now affecting the circa six million Tibetans within China. The fortitude with which Tibetans faced the Chinese annexation of their homeland mid-last century along with the plethora of Himalayan information that has demonstrably iterated global thought and culture as a result of the Tibetan diaspora, marks Tibet's future, its children and its culture, as a community worthy of respect and global care.
One million Tibetan children are at risk of dying from disease and malnutrition. Their deaths are preventable.
Founded in 1993 as the Tibet Child Nutrition Project (TCNP), the Terma Foundation now implements public health programs including nutrition, education, primary and preventive health care, acknowledging traditional belief systems, and integrating low-tech, low-cost western technology where appropriate.
Terma's work in the TAR and adjacent ethnic Tibetan areas of the People's Republic of China is carried out by a multidisciplinary coalition of Tibetans, Chinese, and westerners in successful cooperation with PRC nationals and local health authorities.
Objectives include:
• Focusing on the health and welfare of children, women, and the elderly who maintain indigenous values while confronting contemporary challenges;
• Promoting environmentally appropriate traditional agriculture, consumption of high nutrient indigenous foods, and cultivation of Tibetan herbs;
• Supporting educational programs in public health, literacy, vocational training, the arts, and international education exchange;
• Developing microeconomic initiatives at the grassroots level which will sustain the local health infrastructure; and
• Facilitating interaction between Tibetans and other indigenous communities internationally and on issues relating to health, education, and the environment.
