The highpoint of the Turks & Caicos Islands (a British Colony) has been achieved. Blue Mountain's summit on the island of Providenciales was reached on Wednesday, January 4th under partly cloudy skies and strong winds. While only approximately 250 feet high in elevation, Blue Mountain's summit view provided vast panoramas of this beautiful Caribbean region.

P.S. I have come to discover that some information on the Internet designates Flamingo Hill on East Caicos Island the highest point, but the local literature plus other Internet research indicates that Blue Mountain, highest point in the Blue Hills region on the island of Providenciales, is the actual highest point. If anyone should have documentation regarding this discrepency between which one is actually the highpoint, please E-mail me at echojj@aol.com.

John

The Rowell Fund for Tibet's Board of Advisors has decided to award funds for 2012 to seven projects that deal with maternal health care, oral history, journalism, education and photography. The Fund will award $40,968 to applicants for projects throughout Asia in memory of lifelong Tibet supporters, Galen and Barbara Rowell, who died in a plane crash in 2002.

The Fund received 111 applications from Tibetans in Tibet and outside for this grant cycle, and the selected projects will receive amounts ranging from $7500 to $3725.

"With a record number of applications this year, the Board of Advisors had more diversity of projects, but no less of a challenge in selecting the best projects that fulfill the mission of the Rowell Fund. We hope that the Rowell Fund continues to fill a niche to provide core or supplemental funding for projects that may be otherwise hard to fund," said John Ackerly, member of the Board of Advisors of Rowell Fund for Tibet.

As avid mountaineers and outdoor photographers, Galen and Barbara Rowell helped bring Tibet and the Himalayas into the public eye. Their fund continues this legacy, providing small grants to Tibetan writers, academics, photographers, and conservationists. To learn more about Galen and Barbara Rowell and the background of the Rowell Fund, visit http://www.savetibet.org/support-tibet/donate-rowell-fund.

Some of this year's grant recipients are:*

1. Association of Tibetan Journalists (ATJ) in Dharamsala to publish a stylebook in Tibetan language, primarily on print and radio reporting. (Grant amount: $7243) www.tibetanjournalists.org

2.Tibetan Oral History Project to record and translate the personal histories of Tibetan elders in Tibetan settlements in India. (Grant amount: $7500) www.tibetoralhistory.org

3. Common Ground to undertake photography workshop project in Dharamsala to encourage Tibetan photographers. (Grant amount: $3725) www.commongroundsproject.org

*Not all projects have been listed as some of the recipients have requested confidentiality.

ICT and the Rowell Fund for Tibet wish to congratulate this year's grant recipients. Past recipients have included Tibetans who have undertaken photography, film making and related projects that have enriched the Tibetan society. The Advisory Board of the Fund is made up of friends and family of Galen & Barbara and includes John Ackerly, Conrad Anker, David Breashears, Jimmy Chin, Bob and Beth Cushman, John Jancik , Bob Palais, Tony Rowell and Ray and Nicole Rowell Ryan. The Fund is managed by the International Campaign for Tibet.

For more information about Rowell Fund for Tibet see our website: www.savetibet.org/about-ict/rowell-fund-tibet

Colorado based Team Highpoint is proud to announce as part of their 2012 schedule, they will be traveling to Europe to climb the highest points in the countries of Spain (11,414 ft.), Portugal (7,713 ft.), and Andorra (9,652 ft.). These three countries will be, if Team Highpoint is successful, the 10th, 11th, and 12th European country highpoints reached in a 25 month span.

Team HighPoint from the non-profit 501(c)(3) 50 For Tibet fund raising project in support of The Rowell Fund For Tibet returned from Scandinavia in July where they successfully achieved four (4) new country international highpoints (Norway, Finland, Sweden & Denmark) from June 26th through July 10th. With the five (5) international country highpoints achieved in 2010, Team HighPoint has now accumulated nine (9) total international highpoints and 48 U.S. state highpoints (as well as Washington D.C.) since the project's inception in June 2006. Since 50 For Tibet's beginning in 2006, over 120,000 miles of travel have been logged and approximately $210,000 in donations have been raised to promote The Rowell Fund For Tibet (www.savetibet.org/about-ict/rowell-fund-tibet), an organization which provides grants to help preserve the threatened Tibetan culture.

Team HighPoint consists of John Jancik (Parker, Colorado), Terri Baker (Parker, Colorado), David Baker (Denver, Colorado) and Steve Gardiner (Billings, Montana). John and Terri, who originally met the late legendary photographer and mountaineer Galen Rowell in 1995 as the three of them prepared for their participation in the 1996 Top Of The World Expedition to northern Greenland, now serve on The Advisory Board of The Rowell Fund For Tibet. On September 23rd, 2006, Team HighPoint was honored with a special meeting with His Holiness The Dalai Lama during his visit to Colorado.

To learn more about Team HighPoint and its 50 For Tibet project, see the Team's website at www.50fortibet.org or contact John Jancik at echojj@aol.com. More information about the Tibetan situation is available from the International Campaign for Tibet at www.savetibet.org or by phone at (202) 785-1515.

50 For Tibet was featured in a story aired by local Denver CBS network affiliate, KCNC-TV, Channel 4 on Wednesday, August 2nd, 2006.

This year's application is now available for download. Application materials will be accepted from September 1-30 at 12am EST. Applications submitted during any other time of the year cannot be considered, and will not be returned. All applications received during the month of September will be acknowledged within 7 days of receipt. If sending in your application by mail, please use a paper clip instead of staples.

For more information, please go to the following link ...

http://www.savetibet.org/documents/other/2011-2012-rowell-fund-application

Top of Scandinavia Trip an Unqualified Success!

Colorado based Team HighPoint from the non-profit 501(c)(3) 50 For Tibet fund raising project in support of The Rowell Fund For Tibet has returned from Scandinavia where they successfully achieved four (4) new country international highpoints (Norway, Finland, Sweden & Denmark) from June 26th through July 10th. With the five (5) international country highpoints achieved in 2010, Team HighPoint has now accumulated nine (9) total international highpoints and 48 U.S. state highpoints (as well as Washington D.C.) since the project's inception in June 2006.

Since 50 For Tibet's beginning in 2006, over 120,000 miles of travel have been logged and approximately $210,000 in donations have been raised to promote The Rowell Fund For Tibet (www.savetibet.org/aboutict/rowell-fund-tibet), an organization which provides grants to help preserve the threatened Tibetan culture. In addition, Team HighPoint has provided education and publicity about the Tibetan situation resulting from the occupation by China over the past 60 years. "The oppression of the Tibetan people is one of this planet's saddest ongoing tragedies. While much of the world has condemned China for its actions, serious, substantive dialogue that would provide Tibetans their homeland and culture has really not been achieved." states Team HighPoint member John Jancik. "Regardless of their location, atrocities, whether they be in Africa or Asia or some other locale, should not be ignored by the world community because ultimately we have a moral responsibility to our fellow human beings that we can help them live in peace and with home rule. That is why we chose to take the 50 for Tibet project back and forth across the United States as well as internationally."

Team HighPoint consists of John Jancik (Parker, Colorado), Terri Baker (Parker, Colorado), David Baker (Denver, Colorado) and Steve Gardiner (Billings, Montana). John and Terri, who originally met the late legendary photographer and mountaineer Galen Rowell in 1995 as the three of them prepared for their participation in the 1996 Top Of The World Expedition to northern Greenland, now serve on The Advisory Board of The Rowell Fund For Tibet. On September 23rd, 2006, Team HighPoint was honored with a special meeting with His Holiness The Dalai Lama during his visit to Colorado.

To learn more about Team HighPoint and its 50 For Tibet project, see the Team's website at www.50fortibet.org or contact John jancik at echojj@aol.com. More information about the Tibetan situation is available from the International Campaign for Tibet at www.savetibet.org or by phone at (202) 785-1515.

Check out this link: http://cbs4denver.com/video/?id=19958@kcnc.dayport.com featuring a 50 For Tibet feature story video aired by local Denver CBS network affiliate, KCNC-TV, Channel 4 on Wednesday, August 2nd, 2006.