The Karen Hilltribes Trust

The Karen Hilltribes Trust (KHT) is a charity based in the United Kingdom "dedicated to working with the Karen people of Northern Thailand to help them build a better future for themselves".[1] The trust is a registered charity (no. 1093548) with key aims of improving health, increasing access to education and securing better livelihoods for the Karen.[2]

The Karen Hilltribes Trust
AbbreviationKHT
MottoBuilding a Better Future
Formation1999 (1999)
FounderPenelope Worsley
TypeRegistered charity
Registration no.1093548
FocusKaren people
Region served
Northern Thailand
Methods
  • Improve health
  • Access to education
  • Secure livelihoods
Director
William Harnden
Revenue (2015)
£0.4 million
Volunteers
500+
Websitewww.karenhilltribes.org.uk

History

The trust was founded by Penelope Worsley in 1999 after the death of her son Richard Worsley, who had previously spent six months volunteering with the Karen people during his gap year. After joining the army, Richard died in a car crash in Germany in 1996; following this the Karen dedicated a water system to him in a remote village.[3]

The trust raised around £3 million in its first 13 years, which helped provide clean water to 400 villages and supported education for hundreds of children each year. In 2013, the position of Director was handed over to William Harnden, a former volunteer with the charity.[4]

As of 2015, more than 500 volunteers had worked on projects with KHT, teaching English or installing clean water systems. The trust's income was just over £360,000 in 2015.[5]

Objectives

The Karen are the largest hill tribe in northern Thailand, numbering around 400,000.[3] The trust's projects all take place within Mae Hong Son Province, the poorest province in Thailand. The trust operates a small office in the town of Khun Yuam and co-ordinates administrative and fundraising activity from York, UK.[6]

The trust aims to "see the Karen people empowered to help themselves in a sustainable way" by focusing on:[1]

Activities

As of 2015, the trust claims to have helped improve the lives of more than 200,000 people since its inception by funding projects and sending volunteers from the UK and elsewhere to assist Karen communities in Mae Hong Son province.[5]

Since 1999, volunteers sent by the trust have helped local construction workers install water systems to provide clean water to 50,000 people and reduce levels of typhoid. Around 30,000 blankets and 40,000 mosquito nets have been distributed in the same period to guard against cold temperatures and malaria.[7]

The trust funds 23 school buses, giving over 700 children access to secondary school, and a school meals programme funds rice for over 400 school children. A dormitory was built for the secondary school in Mae La Luang, and some students have vocational or higher education funded by the trust.[5]

Since 2008, the trust has worked with Karen farmers to irrigate 5,600 rai of farmland, estimated to benefit at least 60,000 people.[7]

Collaborating charities
  • The Karen Hilltribes Trust
  • Charity Commission. The Karen Hilltribes Trust, registered charity no. 1093548.
  • The Christadelphian Meal-a-Day Fund

References
  1. "About Us". The Karen Hilltribes Trust. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  2. Charity Commission. The Karen Hilltribes Trust, registered charity no. 1093548.
  3. "From North Yorkshire to Thailand". BBC North Yorkshire. 4 November 2008.
  4. Laycock, Mike (12 July 2013). "William Harnden becomes new director of Karen Hilltribes Trust". York Press.
  5. "Report of the Trustees and Financial Statements for The Karen Hilltribes Trust" (PDF). Charity Commission. 30 September 2015.
  6. "Location". The Karen Hilltribes Trust. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
  7. "Impact". The Karen Hilltribes Trust. Retrieved 29 December 2016.
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