Dear Friend:

Enclosed is information about our efforts here. If there is any assistance you may be able to give us in any of these areas please contact us or send us any forms or requests for additional information. At this time, starting up the school, we are in great need of assistance.

Our work is here in the area of Maesai, in Chiangrai Province of Northern Thailand.

We work with the Akha Hill Tribe in this region. About 300,000 plus in population, the geographical area in which the Akha live extends from Thailand, Burma, Laos, China to Vietnam.

We have established the beginning of a tribal University here in Maesai for the Akha Hill Tribe.

Of all the Hill Tribes it would be fair to say that the Akha are the most marginalized and hardest hit by the rapid expansion of consumer economy in this region. New roads pushed into mountain areas to claim resources there have left them without land in the age old tale.

The purpose of our University is to offset the negative effects of this development as well as to give them means by which to communicate with the greater world, and meet the changes they are encountering in as strong a fashion possible.

As a result, the University also serves as a cultural center for their traditions.

We have been in this region working with the Akha for six years. But the University has only been open a short time and we are in great need of many resources to achieve our goals and meet the needs of a people rapidly being displaced.

Our work with the Akha people is preservation and promotion of their language and culture, medical support, cultural documentation, aggricultural assistance, book publication, translations and literacy. At the school here in Maesai Akhas are being taught by Akhas.

Our dream is to see The Akha University grow and become a center for culture and life long free access to education for the Akha in order to help them catch up and keep up with so many of the changes that are being forced on them, not all good.

Though we work with many religious Akha, this is not a religious institution, nor political. Although we do understand that education itself is a very political matter, especially for ethnic minorities.

We have worked extensively with the Akhams on finishing the new Akha script and now have childrenms books available. More titles will be available soon.

We are trying to get on the e-mail list of any who have worked with the Akha. We would like to keep them updated about my work here, and would like to ask anyone who has worked with or done research about the Akha if they would be willing to donate copies of notes, research, reports, films, photos, etc to our library for use by the Akha.

It has been unfortunate that in the past many people have studied the Akha with very great cooperation and good will on the part of the Akha. However the Akha have often seen very little come of it. For this reason we are hoping that many will understand this point well taken, and be so kind as to help us recover copies of much of this material, and make it available for the Akha within a library.

There are also many needs here that go along with building an institution. If you or your organization are interested or find these needs to be within the scope of assistance you provide please contact me, or send me the appropriate grant applications be it for equipment or research funds.

Listed are some our needs below, certainly not complete, but enough to cover many of the bases.

There is need here for medical aid service provided to the villages, a mobile clinic, medical equipment and supplies, a 4x4 ambulance to bring people out to hospitals from remote villages in order to keep them alive.

For some of the more remote areas there is the need for solar charged radios to communicate medical emergencies as weekly visits are very difficult. As well we are attempting to leave lock boxes with a trained individual in each village for the most basic of first aid supplies.

There is need of basic rice subsidy in some regions, and long term agricultural assistance as well, to address nutritional needs.

The University needs computers for a network, funds for extended internet access while networking with world indigenous organizations.

We need lab equipment for training medical staff on the nature of illnesses such as malaria and AIDS.

There is also the need for resources to address the heroin problem and rehabilitation. There are successful programs here which do not rely on methadone.

Bottom line is that we are trying to keep the population of Akha stable if not growing, but at least not shrinking. We suspect it is shrinking but have no way to document what is going on. This kind of research would be useful.

In the department of language work we have one language specialist from Berkeley who would be willing to do much Akha language work if we can find any small amount of money to help out in the way of a grant.

If you can pass this message on to any other parties who may be able to assist, we would greatly appreciate it.

Thankyou.

Sincerely,

Matthew McDaniel