Lotus Outreach is a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to ensuring the education, health and safety of at-risk and exploited women and children in the developing world.  It was founded in India as a secular organization, White Lotus Charitable Trust, in 1993 by Buddhist lama Khyentse Norbu to aid Tibetan refugees in Bir. Struck by the absence of media attention to the abject and widespread suffering of the local population, he expanded the mission of Lotus Outreach to serve the most neglected and forgotten peoples through education.

In 2002, Lotus Outreach was incorporated in California to create a U.S. center of infrastructure.  Today, we work with over 30,000 of the most marginalized women and children in India and Cambodia to improve access to health, education and economic opportunity.  Our projects range from providing education and rehabilitative services to victims of child labor and sexual exploitation, to ensuring food and water security for the rural poor, to extending preventative healthcare and income-generating opportunities to isolated communities.

Lotus Outreach affiliates are present in eight nations worldwide, and our all-volunteer international trustees have diverse backgrounds that span media, academia, human services and finance.   Our staff of five draws on equally rich backgrounds, represents four nations, and enjoys a healthy and productive working rapport that bridges 14 time zones.