About Us

The volunteers of Karuna-Shechen Asia, Hong Kong work on lecture series, auctions, design, and fundraising for our many humanitarian activities.

Karuna-Shechen in France manages all our activities in Europe and arranges lecture tours.

The USA branch of Karuna-Shechen also manages projects for cultural preservation.

Karuna-Shechen is a charitable non-profit association with branches throughout the world. Shechen is an area in eastern Tibet, and karuna means compassion in Sanskrit. We provide education, medical and social services, care of the elderly, and assistance to individuals in need.

Matthieu Ricard is the main coordinator for Karuna-Shechen. He is a best-selling author, a Buddhist monk, a great humanitarian, and a world-acclaimed photographer who has been living in the Himalayan region for four decades.

We have already built over thirty humanitarian projects in our target area - Tibet, Nepal, India, and Bhutan - yet our operating expenses are only 2% of the annual budget of 1.20 million US dollars.

Twenty years of experience has allowed us to establish an effective collaborative team of reliable workers, trained from the local population, and qualified foreign volunteers. We directly interact with the community. This has proven to be an effective working model that has consistently and successfully overcome barriers of language and terrain.

Karuna-Shechen’s activities have a significant direct impact on individuals, families, and their communities. We are there to help with our professional experience and caring.

We have branches around the world.