17000 ft Foundation works to improve lives of the people of remote, high altitude mountainous villages of Ladakh, in areas that lie isolated and ignored for centuries due to problems of harsh terrain. By strengthening existing systems and providing opportunities for growth within these hamlets, 17000 ft aims to stem the desperate exodus of these indigenous communities to faraway cities. Our programs focus on improving education in Govt. Schools, creating livelihood opportunities, and generating exposure through interactions with the outside world. Today, our work spans the entire 65,000 sq. km. of Ladakh, and we aim to impact other similarly remote, inaccessible regions.

1. “About Us”

2. UNION TERRITORY OF
LADAKH

3. Development in Ladakh is a massive
challenge due to harsh terrain and
climate conditions
• High Altitudes, extreme temperatures
and mountainous terrain characterize
the 700+ hamlets of Ladakh.
• The Hamlets are tiny, scattered and
sparsely populated and spread over
vast terrain
• A cold desert, with extremely dry
temperatures, Ladakh suffers from very
limited agriculture opportunities
TERRAIN
Remoteness has isolated much of
Ladakh Districts from the
disproportionate development of
neighbouring districts
• Physical Remoteness: Many parts of Ladakh
remain physically remote owing to rough terrain and
extreme winters, cutting off entire villages
• Infrastructural Remoteness: Most villages lack
basic infrastructure and services, with
disproportionate development in the few “urban”
areas that exist
• Economical Remoteness: Jobs are limited to Govt.
and Tourism (in selected areas), with a large majority
being sustenance farmers
REMOTENESS
Lack of development results in rural flight,
which is made much more critical and
urgent since these are frontier regions
• Ladakh shares international borders with
China and Pakistan, making it the first
line of defense for our country
• Frequent border skirmishes in Ladakh
necessitate a strong Military presence in
the area, making development difficult
FRONTIER
REGION
DEVELOPMENT IN LADAKH: The Challenge

4. EDUCATION IN LADAKH: The Big Problem
Dismal quality of
Education in Govt.
Schools of Ladakh;
Less than
55% children
from Grade 8 able to
read Grade 2text
CAUSES WHAT IT LEADS TO
• >95% of the Schools are rural and remote
with the average school strength being just
25 students per school
• Remoteness and inaccessibility lead to
problems in teacher training & delivery of
education
• Schools closed for 3 months annually due
to harsh winters, leaving large gaps in
education
• Poor infrastructure in village schools
erodes confidence of Parents in Govt. School
education
• 85% villages do not have grid electricity
• Over 60% villages still lack mobile
connectivity
• Over 87% of the schools do not have any
Digital Facilities
• Student Migration: Very young children
are sent away from their homes to the
cities to enroll in private schools, often
dependent on monetary support from
friends or even strangers
• High Dropout Rates: The low quality
education and the lack of parental
guidance and support to children living
alone in the cities lead to most of them
dropping out to seek temporary jobs
• Decreasing Enrollment in Govt.
Schools: Which leads to inadequate
deputation of teaching staff , diminishing
administrative interest and a further drop
in student learning
• Deserted Border Villages: Arising as a
result of migrating families for education
The Problem

5. From a
Diagnostic
Survey
conducted by
17000ft in
1000
Schools
across Leh &
Kargil Districts of
Ladakh
Drass, Kargil – School covered in Snow, yet still
functioning
Run down buildings, single teacher, multiple
grades
Remote Schools, built away from the
village, many not connected by road
A School in Changthang, Leh – Bare Floors,
no furniture
Remote Schools, built away from the
village, many not connected by road

6. Who We Are:
We are a Team of Senior Corporate professionals turned Social
Entrepreneurs, with a deep connect to remote parts of The
Indian Himalayan Region (IHR)
What we do:
Improve the struggling K-12 Education System in the remotest
and toughest areas of Ladakh
Our Vision:
A world where geography and distances offer no barriers to
opportunity and growth
Our Mission:
To transform the lives of high altitude frontier communities to
develop them into self-sustaining, resilient and thriving
regions
17000 ft: The altitude that we
crossed on foot, to reach our
remotest beneficiaries

7. THE 17000FT APPROACH
Creating an educated rural base
by creating an ecosystem of
support for schools in remote
villages.
17000ft drives and demonstrates
impact on the ground by adopting
and transforming remote Govt.
Schools to ensure access to quality
education for all, regardless of the
remoteness of the region
School Transformation Community
Mobilization
Bringing the community together
to achieve something beneficial to
their village.
17000ft drives sustainability of its
programs through community
mobilization and awareness drives,
outreach events and volunteer
tourism to increase participation and
ownership in village schools
Bringing in Systemic Reform
through Advocacy and Policy
design and Implementation
support.
17000ft advises and works closely
with the Government of the Union
Territory of Ladakh for Systemic
Transformation at scale based on its
extensive on-ground experience in
the remotest villages
Systemic
Transformation

8. Our Programs
School
Transformation
 DigiLab@17000ft
 Infrastructure@17000ft
 Library@17000ft
 Anganwadi@17000ft
 TeacherTraining@17000ft
Community
Mobilization
 Communities@17000ft
 Voluntourist@17000ft
 Bhoti@17000ft
Systemic
Transformation
 Advocacy
 Ecosystem Reform

9. Specialized Solar Powered
Digital Learning Solution for
off-grid and off-network
areas
105
Schools with
DigiLabs
60,000+Learning
hours
93% Active Users
14%
Avg. improvement in
student learning
School Transformation
DigiLab
@17000ft

10. Digital Learning in Covid Lockdown
How the DigiLab transformed learning
Awards for
DigiLab in 2021
2021
1500 students across
73 schools took tablets home
to study on assigned weekly rotation
Over 16,000 hrs of self learning clocked
Average Learning Improvement in
Maths: 7.40% &
Science: 19.65%

11. Active Reading Spaces
in Schools to improve
reading and exposure
220
Libraries Setup and
actively supported
2000+
Book Reading
Workshops
3
Books
read per
child per
month
Libraries
@17000ft
School Transformation

12. Infrastructure Upgrade of
Schools for holistic
development and
improving community
perception
140
Schools Upgraded
105
Schools Solarized
Playgrounds,
Furniture,
Painting &
Carpeting
School Transformation
Infrastructure
@17000ft

13. Anganwadi
@17000ft
Transformation of
Anganwadi Centers to
ensure School Readiness
150
Anganwadis upgraded
8,500
Children benefitted
Paint, Carpet,
Play Equipment,
TLM
School Transformation

14. Capacity Building of
Teachers and DIET in
various methodologies
2,100
Teachers trained
Blended Learning,
Library Program,
Phonics English
34,000
Training Hours
TeacherTraining
@17000ft School Transformation

15. Community
Mobilization
Community Awareness
and Mobilization Drives
to drive development,
increase participation and
ownership in Govt.
Schools
250+
Workshops
30,000 man days
Villager Mobilizations
Communities
@17000ft
Structured Volunteer
Tourism Programs in
remote villages to drive
income and exposure
500+
Volunteer Tourists
Voluntourist
@17000ft
Rs 1.5 Cr
income generated from
Voluntourism in 170
Villages
46,764
Volunteering hours
Preservation and
Promotion of local
language to promote
local culture
Bhoti
@17000ft
36 Titles
36,000 Storybooks
published and
distributed
23,000+
Community Members
impacted thru Covid
Outreach

16. Strategic Partnerships
with the Ladakh
Government to drive
policy development and
implementation at scale
Early Childhood
Education
Working with the Govt. to
formulate and implement
Early Childhood Education
Strategy for Ladakh
Ecosystem
Reform
Digital Education
Design and development
of Ed-Tech Strategy in
Schools
Systemic Transformation
Advocacy to bring in
scalable and sustainable
reforms in the Education
System of Ladakh
Anganwadi
Integration
Integration of Anganwadi
Centers into Primary
Schools
Advocacy
Regularization of
Library Program

17. 17000ft ALIGNMENT WITH UN’s SDGs
Our programs drive equality by generating
awareness about mountain tribal
communities and driving external
participation in the development of the
region
Our programs ensure equal opportunity to
both genders and in particular on Govt.
Schools which have higher enrollment of
girls, to promote gender equality and
empowerment of all women and girls
Our Volunteer Tourism programs drive
income and economic opportunity to
remote villages off the tourism grid, to
promote sustained, inclusive and
sustainable economic growth for all
Our programs focus on the most
disadvantaged and marginalized tribal
communities in remote, neglected
regions, to ensure inclusive and equitable
quality education for all
Our Digital Education Programs provide
Solar Electricity to schools in off-grid
villages, to ensure access to affordable,
reliable, sustainable and modern energy

18. OUR IMPACT
50,000 children provided
access to quality education near their homes
50% fall in
dropouts/migration in 17000ft
adopted Govt. Schools over 4 years
Overall improvement in Student
Learning through 17000ft Interventions in
Govt. Schools
17000ft invited to partner with the Ladakh Govt.
to bring in Systemic Reform in
Education

19. VOICES FROM THE GROUND
“After being away from home for my
studies from nursery to Standard 5 for
attending a private school, it feels so nice to
be back home with my family. Our school
has many facilities and even tablets to take
home to study. My old school did not give
us tablets”
Student of Class 6, Middle School Laido, Leh District
HAPPY STUDENTS
“17000 ft has not only changed
Karkitchoo, but has changed the whole of
the Ladakh Union Territory. Thanks to
17000ft, we, the Village Education
Committee of Karkitchoo are now more
united and come together for the
development of our school”
Javed Kaka, Village Education Committee Chairman,
Karkitchoo, Kargil District
MOTIVATED COMMUNITY MEMBERS
“With 17000 ft’s training, we are
equipped to use novel interactive
teaching methods. We hold essay and
reading competitions and storytelling
competitions. The kids now love to
read! The Tablets provided by 17000
ft to Class 6-8 students have helped
them develop digital skills”
Sonam Gyaltson, Head Master Council Model
School, Sakti, Leh District, National Teacher
Awardee 2020
EMPOWERED TEACHERS

20. Sujata Sahu: Founder & CEO
NITI Aayog - Women
Transforming India Award 2019
Presented by Hon’ble Minister of Defence,
Shri Rajnath Singh
Nari Shakti Award 2015
Presented by:
The Late Hon’ble President of India,
Shri Pranab Mukherjee
A Senior Corporate Techie who quit after 15
years of global experience to work with
children. A trekker and outdoor enthusiast, she
founded 17000ft after a particularly life-
threatening solo trek into Ladakh.
Sujata leads 17000ft from the front in
championing the cause of marginalized tribal
communities of the Indian Himalayan Region

21. Dawa Jora: Director
A successful Ladakhi businessman, Dawa is actively involved in
charitable initiatives across the region. Dawa is known for his
amazing resource mobilization skills, even under the harshest of
conditions.
Donald Lobo
The founding technical team member at Yahoo, Lobo started his
philanthropic journey in early 2000s when he founded the Chintu
Gudiya Foundation. Our ambassador overseas, Lobo advises the
core team on technology and partnerships
THE TEAM
Rajesh Goel
Recently superannuated as the CMD of HPL, Rajesh has over 38
years of experience in Indian PSUs, and has held leadership
positions across domains. Rajesh advises the core team on
strategy and government policies.
Directors Advisors
Sandeep Sahu: Co-Founder & COO
A serial entrepreneur and an avid trekker, Sahu brings on board
his extensive knowledge of mountainous regions coupled with his
serious planning and logistics capabilities to head strategy and
operations.
Luis Miranda
Luis is Chairman, Indian School of Public Policy and Centre
for Civil Society. He was part of HDFC Bank’s Founding Team
and also founded IDFC Private Equity. He advises 17000ft on
Strategic Partnerships
Dr. Fiona Dias Miranda: Director
Fiona is a Sexual Health Educator and is associated with various
Not for Profits. She is deeply passionate about education in
remote areas and focuses on Fundraising, Education and
Teacher Training at 17000ft

22. FEW OF OUR SPONSORS

23. IHR: THE INDIAN
HIMALAYAN REGION
11 States & 2 Union Territories
5,30,000 km2
Population: 50 Million
The Way
Forward

24. GOAL 2025
Make Quality education
accessible to 500,000
childrenof the
Remotest Districts in the Indian
Himalayan
Region
Replicate DigiLab Program in 3
Remote Himalayan States
Children in other similarly challenging geographies
to have access to Digital and quality learning
opportunities
Systemic Transformation of
Education in Ladakh
Scale the impact of 17000ft’s work on the ground
through Government Partnerships to achieve
Systemic Transformation in Education

25. Why Support
17000ft
 17000ft focuses on only the most ignored
frontier villages of the IHR
 There is minimal CSR or Institutional support that is focused on
any of the IHR regions due to insufficient business
interests
 As per the State Education Quality Index (SEQI), 6 of the worst
performing states are from the IHR
 17000ft Programs are specific to the unique challenges of
these remote and inaccessible mountain regions
 Urgent need to include the IHR in Development Dialogues
There are 5 Million
children studying in
remote and under
developed districts of the
Indian Himalayan
Region that lack access
to quality education

26. Support 17000ft
1
Whole School Transformation (Ladakh) – 10 Schools
• Playgrounds, Paint, Carpet, Furniture, Libraries, Digital
Classrooms,
Anganwadi (10 Schools)
Rs. 1.7 Cr over 3 Years
2
Digital Education (IHR) – 20 Schools
• Sikkim/Arunachal Pradesh Rs. 1.8 Cr over 3 Years
3
Libraries (IHR) – 100 Schools
• West Sikkim (100 Govt. Schools): Rs. 1.25 Cr over 1 year
OUR ASK

27. Thank you!
Website: http://www.17000ft.org
Gurgaon Office: Q 139, Ground Floor
South City 1, Gurugram, Haryana - 122003
Email: sujata.sahu@17000ft.org