Namaste, Friends and Supporters of dZi,

As I reflect on 2007, I am amazed at how much has changed-and progressed-at dZi. The holiday season is a time to reflect on all that we are grateful for, and I am grateful to be a part of an organization that demonstrates so much compassion towards others, and through our programs, has a tremendous impact on the lives of so many individuals. Was there a master plan when we first launched the dZi? Not initially, only the desire to help the underserved, a willingness to take the next step, and a willingness to accept and learn from mistakes. Here we are in 2007-ten years later- and I am incredibly grateful for my staff and Board of Directors. Without all of these dedicated, supportive individuals-and I do mean individuals-I would still be sitting at the kitchen table working alone. The facts are that my staff does all the work and I get all the credit: that's being honest this holiday season.

Our India project coordinator, Bill Rohs, is leaving us at the dZi Foundation. I want to express my gratitude for his work in initiating a number of innovative programs in Ladakh and Sikkim, India. Bill was extremely dedicated to those he served, and the programs he started will continue to serve thousands for years to come. We wish Bill all the best in whatever he attempts to take on in the future: we know he will be successful. (Photo is of Bill Rohs at an opening ceremony for a school the dZi Foundation supports.)

Garry Schalla, dZi Associate Director, will take over the India programs. Garry will split his time at the dZi-half in India and half at the dZi office in Ridgway.

We just completed an almost year-long, internal strategic development process: Organizational Strengthening and Alignment. In layman's terms-we took stock of who we are, what our values are, and where we are headed. I want to share with you one of the many outtakes from this process. When we asked ourselves why we are here, it boiled down to this:

Through affiliation with the dZi Foundation, stakeholders' perspectives and perceptions are broadened - and each is ultimately inspired to make a personal difference in the world.

By just being affiliated with our work, many have come to believe in the power a few individuals can have, given creativity and a liberal dash of stubbornness. Maybe you have gone on a trip with us or sponsored a child, it all counts equally. Giving back has no levels: we all do what we can do.

The individuals that dZi serves may live on the other side of the world, but the fundamental desires they have are the same as ours: a safe home, enough food to feed our family, and a chance for our children to prosper. In this holiday season, I want to thank all of you for supporting our work in Asia. I continue to be honored and humbled, with the trust you have in all of us at the dZi Foundation.

Enjoy your Friends and Family during the holidays.

All the best.

Jim Nowak
Executive Director

A School is Just a Building.

-Ben Ayers, Nepali Project Coordinator

This month we would like to highlight one of the most important and well-received components of the dZi's Revitalize A Village program in Nepal - our formation and strengthening of Parent Teacher Associations in remote schools. The Revitalize A Village program places the control over project selection and implementation in the hands of community members, and the reconstruction of dilapidated school buildings tends to the highest priority in our target areas. However, a school building alone is worth little without proper teaching materials, motivated parents, and committed teachers.

In the extremely remote and poor villages of Eastern Nepal, the school teachers tend to hold a position of great esteem and power within the community. These teachers are often the only members of the community with a regular salary (however meager) and a formal education and tend to find themselves placed in remote communities far from their own homes and families. This combined with little supervision and accountability results in very high rates of teacher absenteeism and poor performance while at work. On the other side of the coin, parents often don't see the long-term value in ensuring that their children attend school and pay attention to their studies. Children often miss school to work as child laborers along the trekking routes or in the fields at home. (Photo above shows a PTA group in front of their children's school building.)

Nepali law requires that each school has an active Parent Teacher Association, but very few communities are aware that this law exists, not to mention having formed active associations. Our first step is to work with community members and form PTAs with teacher representatives and parents representing children in each grade. Our staff then provides a two-day training at each school with one day for the entire community and one day for the PTA itself. These trainings emphasize implementing systems of accountability for both parents and teachers, establishing local fundraising programs for schools, and the importance of education for all children. After the training is completed, we provide each school with a 'tin trunk library' - a portable library that includes a variety of teaching materials, posters, and a small library of books.

World Education, our main partner for this program, has graciously provided our staff with a great deal of in-kind support and training for this program. We follow their training curriculum, and they have been our main provider of materials for our Tin Trunk Libraries. We have also just secured 43 sets of materials for a new self-taught teacher training program that each PTA will implement with supervision and guidance from our field staff.

To date, we have formed thirteen PTAs among our target schools with over 100 members. We will begin our second round of trainings for an additional thirty schools on December 15th, bringing our total to 43 schools and nearly 400 PTA members.

Happiness Home Offically Opens Doors

-Garry Schalla, Ladakh and Sikkim Project Coordinator

The girls sponsored by the dZI Foundation in Gangtok, Sikkim, have made their final move.

When the dZi staff and volunteers arrived to help with the move, the girls were all packed and ready to go. Too excited to sleep, they packed through the night and were anxiously awaiting the helpers' arrival at 5 a.m. With a spring in their step, they made their way down the steps to their new and permanent home. With packs on their backs, the girls ran up and down their new (wide) hallways, giggling, screaming and marveling at their new home.

Roswitha Weppler (a German philanthropist) and her husband Peter, were the driving financial forces behind this new facility. They covered the majority of the home's construction costs; the dZi funded the remaining balance.

The new Sikkim Happiness Home is an incredible structure, layered into the steep Gangtok (capital city of Sikkim) landscape. It is thoughtfully designed to resist major earthquake damage. The hallways are wide, and the bathrooms-one in each room- are beautifully tiled. The girls' bedrooms are large and airy and the interior colors are bright, inviting and very feminine.

Kelsang Phunstuk, a long time dZi advocate and manager of projects in India, did an excellent job of producing this lovely home. His father-in-law gave countless months of his time overseeing the project and daily quality control.

This December, Housemother Tshering and Home Director (and tutor) Tashi Dawa, are traveling to Kathmandu to exchange ideas with the Friendship Home staff-dZi's very first program and girls' safe home in Nepal. This experience will provide a wealth of knowledge, insight, and information to bring back to the Sikkim facility.

I have tried to capture-and share with you-those first exciting moments when the girls arrived at their new home. However, a single photo just would not do it justice. Instead, I can share with you the home's beauty and outstanding craftsmanship (photo above). On behalf of the dZi Foundation-and the Sikkim Happiness Home girls-a huge thank you to all our sponsors, Roswitha, Kelsang and the dZi Sikkim staff for making this dream a reality.