THE CHANGTHANG PROGRAM

Perched high in the windswept plateaus of southeastern Ladakh, where the sapphire waters of Tso Moriri mirror snow peaks and clouds, lies the village of Korzok—home to the pastoral nomadic Changpa community. Since 2018, the Foundation has dedicated its efforts here, weaving together conservation, livelihoods, and education in a place where culture and nature are inseparable.

Korzok sits within the biodiversity-rich Changthang Wildlife Sanctuary, part of the vast high-altitude Changthang landscape that is home to over thirty Changpa groups, each with its own ancient migration patterns. The people of Korzok Tegazung form the largest of these groups, moving with the seasons as their ancestors have for centuries: summers spent in green pastures near Tso Moriri, winters deep in the east at Tegazung. The wetlands around the lakes of the Korzok Tegazung landscape are alive with the wingbeats of bar-headed geese, black-necked cranes, and ruddy shelducks, while the surrounding rangelands shelter kiang, snow leopards, Tibetan foxes, and wild sheep and goats unique to this region.

For the Changpas, landscape and livelihood are one—pastoralism shapes the land, and the land shapes pastoralism. This worldview guides the Foundation’s work: promoting a holistic approach that respects the Changpa’s knowledge, values, and active role in stewarding their environment.

The Drupgud Tandar Chosling Monastery, a spiritual anchor since the 17th century, stands at the heart of Korzok. It safeguards a remarkable collection of sacred texts, embroidered thangkas, ritual costumes, and ceremonial masks, carrying forward the community’s spiritual and artistic heritage. In the short summer months, beyond the monastery’s prayer flags, women set up looms beside yak-hair tents or government-built huts, their weaving inspired by generations of tradition.

The Foundation’s initiatives in Korzok span a wide arc:

• Reviving livelihoods rooted in Changpa weaving traditions.
• Preserving cultural heritage, from monastery treasures to oral histories.
• Training young nature guides and documenting traditional ecological knowledge.
• Collaborating closely with Korzok Monastery and the community on every project.

Our most recent effort—a soon-to-be-released documentary—captures the reality of climate change through the eyes of the Changpas, interweaving personal stories with the projects that seek to strengthen their resilience while safeguarding this extraordinary cultural landscape.