Himalayan Cultural Heritage Foundation

Preserving the Legacy of Mountain people

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With Your Help, We are Making The Himalayas a Better Place

The Himalayan Cultural Heritage Foundation has been working for the past 15 years to conserve and preserve the natural and cultural heritage of the Himalayas, particularly in Ladakh, with generous support and donations from well-wishers. We appreciate the contributions provided by our supporters in any form that is possible.

About us

Sustainable Solutions For The Future

The activities of HCHF are language and literary development, community-based management of cultural and natural resources, folk traditions, art and craft skills promotion and revival, and preservation of cultural and natural heritage. In order to encourage community involvement and cultural preservation, we also place a strong emphasis on awareness campaigns and training workshops. Another important aim is to encourage scientific research and documentation of the impact of climate change on these mountain cultures. This knowledge, we believe, will propel the development of sustainable solutions to mitigate its degradation.

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Conservation and Restoration

Stupas belong to the oldest architectural forms been built in all countries where Buddhist philosophy flourished. Their actual shapes and symbolism developed for more than 2550 years and became a multi-purpose symbol, a treasure of knowledge about outer and inner phenomena, the universe, the nature of our mind and the path leading to the state of full development or enlightenment.

So far, HCHF has restored 60+ stupas across various villages in Ladakh and trained local masons to restore heritage sites. We have also successfully completed five major ancient wall painting conservation projects in Sumda Chun Stupa (Sumda village), Takkhung Khawoche (Cave Temple, Leh), Chomophu Temple (Nubra), Bodhkharbu Gonpa (Kargil), and a painted stupa (Shara village).

Latest News

One-Day Seminar on “Preserving Our Past: Conservation of Cultural Heritage (Rock Art and Indigenous Language) for Future Generations”

sep 10, 2024

Tangtse, 8th September, 2024. The Ladakh Buddhist Association (LBA), in collaboration with Ten Friends of Lalok, successfully organized a one-day seminar titled "Preserving Our Past: Conservation of Cultural Heritage (Rock Art and Indigenous Language) for Future...

Week-long certificate program on Yige writing and reading held in Kargil, Ladakh

aug 28, 2024

Inauguration Week-long certificate program on Yige writing and reading was organized by Ladakh Academy of Art, Culture and Languages Kargil in collaboration with Himalayan Cultural Heritage Foundation (HCHF) on August 17, 2024. The week-long programme was inaugurated...

Heritage committee members visited Digar and Tangyar

jul 15, 2024

On request of the Goba (village head) of Digar, Nubra, the members of the Heritage Committee of the Ladakh Buddhist Association visited the heritage sites in the village, especially the ones damaged by recent road construction and encroached by individuals. While...