World Tibet Day is being held this year on Sunday, July 3rd, linked to the birthday of His Holiness, the Dalai Lama. From the moment we created the event in 1997, it has grown enormously in scope and in public support. In its first year, WTD was held in only 10 cities, in 3 countries; Last year we observed it in 57 cities, in 28 countries around the world. WTD was initiated in Chicago in 1997 at an informal meeting between Tendzin Choegyal, the Dalai Lamas younger brother and Richard Rosenkranz, a Pulitzer Prize nominee in history and a former correspondent from the U.S. Senate. Rosenkranz proposed the concept of WTD, saying it could become an annual worldwide event, designed to help the Tibetan people regain essential freedoms. He also suggested this event could be a way to showcase and celebrate the unique value of Tibetan culture and thought. Enthusiastic about the idea, Tendzin Choegyal suggested WTD should be held in July, linked to his brother's birthday - in order to increase potential support among Tibetans. Believing that the proposed event held great promise, they offered the idea to His Holiness who gave them his blessing and his warm support.

The Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) is a Tibetan non-governmental organization (NGO) that investigates the human rights situation in Tibet and presents this information internationally in various forms. They also organize educational programs and promote the principles of democracy within the Tibetan community. TCHRD, founded in 1996, is the first Tibetan NGO to be formed with the goal of protecting and promoting the human rights of the Tibetan people.

Since the Chinese occupation of Tibet in 1949, the school system has been dramatically changed. Hundreds of monasteries have been destroyed, leaving entire communities and thousands of students without the means of an education. The Chinese education system requires students to learn Chinese as their first language leaving Tibetans with little education in their own language. The resettling of the Chinese people in Tibet has left Tibetans as a minority in their own country. The Tibet Multi-Education Centre (MEC) is a non-profit educational centre for Tibetans-in-exile in Dharamsala, India. They aim to provide free, quality education to newly arrived Tibetans and others in the community. The MEC currently provides classes in several languages, a research and publication centre, and runs a restaurant and hotel to support needy students.

Khawa Karpo Tibet Culture Centre Charitable Trust, Dharamsala is a non-profit organization founded in 2003 by a group of Tibetans. The primary aim is to join and intensify the ongoing struggle of Tibetans in exile. The Chinese invasion and occupation of Tibet not only forced tens and thousands of Tibetans, including its benevolent leader the His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama, into exile but also hardened the maintenance of Tibetan culture. Tibetans in exile, with the help of our friends abroad, have been struggling to keep the traditions alive under great difficulties.

VolunteerTibet is a volunteer referral service that quickly and efficiently connects organizations of the Tibetan community with skilled volunteers. VolunteerTibet officially launched its service on December 10th, 2002, commemorating the date His Holiness the Dalai Lama received the Nobel Peace Prize, and currently works with non-profit and government Tibetan organizations in India, Nepal, Bhutan, and Tibet.

Employing eight exiled Tibetan scholars, editors, authors and administrators in Macleodganj, India, the Center's purpose is to facilitate the dissemination of knowledge of Western literature, science and technology to Tibetans, particularly the younger generation, through their own language. In addition, the Center is dedicated to the preservation of the ancient Tibetan language and culture through its publication in Tibetan of grammatical texts, dictionaries, poetry compilations and translations from the English language. The Center also publishes a popular quarterly literary magazine called Khawa with material composed by its readership.

The Press Club of Tibet was founded in 1997 with the aim to strengthen and mobilize the journalistic skills of the members focusing on the Tibetan freedom struggle. It was founded by a handful of Tibetan journalists based in Dharamsala, northern India, where the Tibetan government-in-exile headed by the Dalai Lama is headquartered. The club oversees the needs of the Tibetan journalists, organizes workshops and seminars, and protects the democratic right of freedom of speech.