UN Releases Updated Women Statistics

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How is the global movement to empower women and girls advancing?  The United Nations Statistics Division recently released The World’s Women 2010 which shows that progress towards gender equality has been made in some areas, such as school enrollment, health and economic participation. At the same time the report shows that much more needs to be done to close the gender gap in critical areas such as power and decision-making and violence against women.

In light of our recent election where, despite the women elected, the US had a record number of women who ran for office, here are the findings regarding power and decision-making taken from the Executive Summary:

Around the world, a lack of gender balance in decision-making positions in government persists.  Women continue to be underrepresented in national parliaments, where on average only 17 percent of seats are occupied by women. The share of women among ministers also averages 17 percent. The highest positions are even more elusive: only 7 of 150 elected Heads of State in the world are women, and only 11 of 192 Heads of Government. The situation is similar at the level of local government: female elected councilors are underrepresented in all regions of the world and female mayors even more so.

In the private sector, women are on most boards of directors of large companies but their number remains low compared to men. Furthermore, the “glass ceiling” has hindered women’s access to leadership positions in private companies.  This is especially notable in the largest corporations, which remain male-dominated. Of the 500 largest corporations in the world, only 13 have a female chief executive officer.

Wondering which organizations are working towards gender equality in government and business?  Check out The White House Project, part of the Stirring the Fire “Take Action” database:

The White House Project, a national, nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization, 501(c)(3), aims to advance women’s leadership in all communities and sectors, up to the U.S. presidency. By filling the leadership pipeline with a richly diverse, critical mass of women, we make American institutions, businesses and government truly representative. Through multi-platform programs, The White House Project creates a culture where America’s most valuable untapped resource—women—can succeed in all realms.

The World’s Women 2010 also highlights the differences in the status of women and men in population and families, health, education, work, violence against women, environment and poverty.  Check out the rest of the report to read about all the key findings!

How a Guide Makes for a Successful Trip

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Lumbum meditating in the cave where Guru Rimpoche once meditated.

I am frequently asked how I go about finding a guide on the trips I take. A good guide is critical to the work I do. Of course I need someone who speaks fairly good English, but the most important quality I’m looking for is an outgoing personality and good people skills. I have found on a few occasions someone from an indigenous group who has managed to learn English will carry a superior attitude and be a bit arrogant with their own people. It is something I have come to watch out for. I guard against it by arriving on location a few days early so I can meet and go out with him/her on a test run before committing to a 4 to 6 week trip. I have had to change guides on a few occasions because of arrogance or shyness issues. It shows up especially during the interview.
On my last trip to Tibet I was blessed with an excellent guide by the name of Lumbum. A good guide is especially critical in Tibet where everything is so sensitive because of the current political situation. Lumbum is hardworking, very outgoing and cares deeply for his fellow Tibetans and their culture. He knew how to engage with our subjects in a way that allowed them to open up about their personal lives without getting into politically sensitive topics. We happened to end up with a driver with a hot temper. For several weeks I watched with admiration as Lumbum skillfully navigated this difficult personality. If you have any plans to go to Tibet I would highly recommend getting in touch with Lumbum. He will help make your trip fun and meaningful!!

Lumbum (English Tour Guide)
Cell phone No.:+86 (0) 13893956746(Amdo)
Cell phone No :+86 (0) 15089036734(Lhasa)
happyfreeboy2003@gmail.com

Climate Change on the Tibetan Plateau

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There has been a lot of controversy about the rate of climate change on the Tibetan Plateau—especially concerning the predictions about the disappearance of glaciers.


Because of unseasonable rain and fast melting glaciers the rivers overflow onto the fields requiring the farmers to harvest their crops underwater.

I have spent the last 2 years interviewing farmers and nomads living on the Tibetan Plateau—individuals who survive by being acutely aware of climate and its changes over time.  In general the nomads say the weather has been getting hotter and dryer.  Consequently the grass that their animals depend on has become sparser in the last 20 years.  The farmer’s claim that they can’t depend on typical seasonal weather patterns to plant their crops like they used to—unusual rains and dry spells raise havoc with their crops.  The higher temperatures has also allowed them to grow corn—a crop that had never been possible to grow at that elevation 5 to 10 years ago.

Here are some of their observations:


Puchun, 37, has lived at this summer camp at the Nojin-Kangtsang Glacier with his yaks since he was 7. The glacier behind him used to be at the grass level, but has disappeared 50% in the last 30 years.


Tsering, a 70 year old nomad, has herded his yaks since he was a young boy. He says the grass, since the change in weather, is extremely sparse. As a result it is difficult to find enough to maintain his animals.


Tsering Dorjee, 62, has spent his life as a nomad herding his yaks around the Demchok Glacier and watching it slowly disappear. He says it is only ¼ the size it was when he was a boy.

Mt. Kailash Kora

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Mt. Kailash, Tibet

I just finished my first Kora (walk around) Mt. Kailash in Western Tibet.  The 52 km trek that crosses one pass at 18,600 ft has served as a spiritual quest for thousands of Buddhists, Hindus, Jains and the pre-Buddhist Bon Po of Tibet.

Serter, 39—Has been a porter on the Kailash since he was 9. He remembers when the glacier to his right reached the valley floor.

The Tibetan Plateau contains in its glaciers the largest amount of frozen water on earth outside of the North and South Poles and as such is known as the ‘Water Tower of Asia’ supplying nearly 1.5 billion people with their water.  Mt. Kailash lies at the center of an area that is key to the drainage systems of the Tibetan Plateau.


Pilgrim on the Kora around Mt. Kailash

I have wanted to get here for years.  It has always been a long difficult several day journey over bone rattling roads to reach Kailash.  The road from Lhasa is now partially paved and will be fully paved within a year.  There is also an Airport that just opened this year about 100 miles from the mountain.  The runway at 14,600 feet makes it the highest commercial airport in the world.  Certainly this new access will increase the number of people coming to Mt. Kailash in the future.

Tsering Omo, 45—Pilgrim at the pass

Continued Tibet Travel

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Tibetan woman inside her home showing a computer in the background.

I am heading back to Mount Kailash and the western Tibetan Plateau to finish my next book documenting the rapid lifestyle and environmental changes occurring on the plateau.  Arranging for support and logistics for a trip into the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) presents its own set of challenges.  First of all in addition to a Chinese Visa, permits are required just to get into the TAR.  Once there depending on where you want to travel you will need a handful of permits to travel to your desired destinations.  In addition the permits it is necessary to find a government approved guide and driver and a properly approved vehicle.  A simple internet search will reveal several agencies that can put a package together providing you with the necessary permits, car, driver and guide.  I have had great experiences with both FIT in Lhasa and Tibet Connections in Xining.  This time I will be using Tibet Connections.

Finding a good guide is always hit or miss for me.  When I have arranged for a guide that I haven’t worked with before I always take him/her out for a day of taking portraits before heading out on a several week trip.  I’m mainly looking for someone that’s good with people.  They don’t have to speak perfect English but I’m watching how they interact with their own people.  This process will begin for me next week when I arrive in Lhasa.  I’ll try to keep up my blog posts to let you know how things are going as I begin my month long trip.

Guest Post: Inigo de Angulo

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Inigo de Angulo, a photographer from Spain, also accompanied me on one of my trips to Tibet in May. It was such a pleasure to watch Inigo interact with the people as he shot and gave Polaroids to his subjects. Inigo has been working on a long term project documenting many religious practices around the world. Here is his description of how the experience affected him.

“What impressed me most of the Tibetans was their devotion: they intensively live their faith at every moment. It is not something reserved for a special day in the calendar, but a constant presence in the way they understand their lives. From the way people greet you, humbly, with both hands together at the chest level; their chanting of the “On mani padme hum” mantra while spinning the prayer wheels; to the prostrations on the ground while circumambulating a temple.

And the most significant thing is that they not only pray for a better life for themselves or their family, but always extend their prayers to the peace and well-being of all the world. Before this trip, I saw some rituals of religions different to mine as something somehow weird and striking. Now I understand better that those rituals represent the way people live their faith, connect to God. I’m more open not only to accept but even to participate in them. I feel closer to the people and through them to God.” Inigo de Angulo

To see his full body of work on Tibetan Devotion go to http://www.enekoertz.com

UN Creates New Structure for Empowerment of Women

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At the beginning on the month the United Nations General Assembly voted unanimously to create a new entity to accelerate progress in meeting the needs of women and girls worldwide.  UN Women combines the resources of four previous branches of the UN that focus on gender equality and women’s empowerment and will be operational by January 2011. 

Taken from a statement by the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon:

“UN Women is a recognition of a simple truth: Equality for women and girls is not only a basic human right, it is a social and economic imperative. Where women are educated and empowered, economies are more productive and strong. Where women are fully represented, societies are more peaceful and stable.”

What an incredible development!  It will be exciting to watch the impact that UN Women will make.  We look forward to tracking the inevitable accomplishments of this unity.

Guest Post: Stevan Talevski

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Over the years I have had many people ask me if they could assist me on one of my trips.  I’ve never been too anxious to do so because I felt it would be too disruptive to have more “foreigners” than necessary show up in a remote village or at a nomad’s tent taking photos.

On my last trip to Tibet in May I decided to take two photographers with me to help cover expenses.   I had met Stevan at one of my lectures at PhotoPlus and Inigo at one of my workshops in Los Angeles.   It turned out to be a great collaborative experience with me learning as much or more from them as they did from me.  My worries about having two extra foreigners show up vs one turned out to be unfounded.   Both Stevan and Inigo were great with the people.

Here are some images and a recollection from Stevan:

 

An early morning walk on the dirt paths of Langmusi (Chinese) or Taktsang Lhamo (Tibetan) revealed approximately 35 motor biking nomads.  These rough riding types rode over 100 kilometers to tithe to the Kerti Gumpa (monastery). What a sight to see these characters with camera phones.

They found me as much of a mystery as I did them.  They sat and prayed with monks in this village that straddled the border between Sichauan and Gansu.  The monks took their donation and draped their motorbikes with prayer flags.  In quick order the nomads sped away to place the flags at the highest peak of the village. The display of prayer flags on mountain tops is widely seen in Tibet.  It is an act of building merit and goodwill as the wind flutters the mantra stamped flags voicing the faith of Buddhism to the world.  It was humbling to experience the devotion of an unlikely group of men. 

It is one of those moments that will always stay with me.

To see more of Stevan’s impressive images visit  www.cielostudios.com. 

Fruit Trees Saving Girls’ Lives

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Though paying and accepting dowry has been illegal in India for 40 years it is unfortunately still all to common.  Strong enforcement of the Anti-Dowry Act, which has been around since 1961, doesn’t exist and bride burning and female infanticide remain a real problem for women and girls in various South Asian countries.   

According to an BCC article “Indian Government statistics show that husbands and in-laws killed nearly 7,000 women in 2001 over inadequate dowry payments.”

In Dharahara village, India, the families have found their own solution around this unfortunate tradition by planting trees to celebrate the birth of a girl.  Read more here.

Ideally there would be an end of dowry deaths, bride burning, and female infanticide all together.  Until then, the people of Dharahara have prevented a single violent dowry or infanticide incident.  It is an evolutionary way around the practice so instilled in their culture.    

Are you familiar with an organization working against dowry deaths, bride burning, and/or female infanticide?  Please share them with us!

Sri Lanka is another country faced with these particular challenges.  Watch (click on full video) how Dr. Chandini Perera is empowering women in her country.

New Support for the Tibetan Buddhist Community

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One of the things that amazed me as I traveled through what was formally Kham and Amdo on the Tibetan Plateau was the amount of new construction at many of the Tibetan Monasteries.   It was not only the amount of new construction but the size and quality of the new monasteries and prayer halls that were being built.  I saw multimillion dollar construction projects that left me wondering where the money was coming from.

One very elaborate Temple that was being built in a very remote area in Qinghai Provence was literally out in the middle of nowhere.   I was told that the funding came from a wealthy individual in Hong Kong.

In another remote area of Sichuan Provence the world’s largest Stupa (Buddhist Shrine) was being built.   Half completed with a construction crane on top it looked like a ‘Stupa condominium’.   I was told it was being financed by ‘someone from the West’.

I was excited to see this resurgence of energy in the Tibetan monastic community.  However, I met a Tibetan documentary filmmaker who had a different perspective.  He felt all this new money coming from the outside was interfering with the historic relationship the monks and monasteries had with the local villages that had historically supported them.  He said, ‘It’s just human nature.  If you are getting millions of dollars donated are you still willing to bless someone’s children or their house for a few sacks of Tsampa {barley flour}?