Climb Your Everest
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Schoolgirls in uniform at their desks in a Nepali classroom, smiling and waving over their open workbooks
A nonprofit for women and girls

There is a leader in every woman waiting to be unleashed.

We help girls and women climb higher through education, opportunity, and leadership.

Give now See the programs
What our name means

Everyone has an Everest

For our founder, Dr. Sara Safari, it was the mountain itself. She was climbing Everest for girls’ education when the 2015 earthquake struck, and went on to become the first Iranian to complete the Seven Summits.

For the women and girls in the program, the climb looks different. A school fee that cannot be paid. A business that cannot be started without capital. A room her voice was never invited into. Each of those is somebody’s Everest, and no one gets up a mountain alone.

So we do what a climbing team does — put the training, the money and the people in place around her, and let her lead the way up.

What we do

Four things that change the course of a life

And what each one has produced.

Students in school uniform at their desks in a Nepali classroom, a visiting teacher beside them

Education

Fees, uniforms and supplies, so a girl stays in school.
  • School tuition, hostel costs, books and other educational expenses covered.
  • A scholarship selection process built around strong academic performance and significant financial need.
  • Students reached through both in-person and virtual workshops, so the program serves women where travel or access is difficult.
Two facilitators opening a Climb Your Everest leadership workshop on stage

Leadership

Seven modules in confidence, critical thinking and financial literacy.
  • Ongoing leadership and life-skills programs for girls and women in multiple countries.
  • A six-month leadership certificate program combining in-person workshops, online learning and mentorship.
  • Local women trained as instructors, delivering leadership, English, computer and career-readiness classes in their own communities.
  • Practical skills built in communication, confidence, resume writing and technology.
A group of women standing together outside a community building in Nepal

Economic empowerment

Capital placed directly with women building businesses.
  • Pathways for women to earn income through micro-loans, small-business support and paid teaching opportunities.
  • Entrepreneurship skills for women starting and running businesses of their own.
  • Donors connected directly with education and empowerment projects, so they can see where their support goes.
A large group of young women and men together under a red and white canopy at a program gathering

Humanitarian support

Relief that reaches women and girls first.
  • Disaster-relief support focused on women and girls, including clothing, sanitary products and essential supplies.
  • Programs expanded across Nepal, Afghanistan, the Philippines, India and other communities.
  • Partnerships with schools, universities, nonprofits and community organizations internationally.
  • International partnerships built so programs continue locally, rather than depending on outside volunteers.

Why we do it, and who we are →

Where we work

Local facilitators, where the program is needed

Certified facilitators deliver Climb Your Everest through schools, universities, nonprofits and women's groups.

  • Nepal
  • India
  • Afghanistan
  • The Philippines

Become a facilitator →

A hall full of young women working through the course material at their desks
From the field

The program, as it happens

Workshops, conferences and classrooms — photographs from Nepal and India.

  • A room of women seated at desks during a leadership workshop, taking notes
    A leadership workshop in session.
  • Participants of the International Teachers’ Conference and Leadership Training standing together indoors
    The International Teachers’ Conference and Leadership Training.
  • A large group of teachers outside with the Climb Your Everest conference banner
    Teachers gathered outside the conference venue.
  • A large group of young women and men together under a red and white canopy
    Participants and trainers at a program gathering.
  • Dr. Sara Safari signing a copy of her book for a girl at a book signing
    Dr. Safari signing Above the Mountain’s Shadow.
  • The Climb Your Everest team holding a signed banner at KMC School in Kathmandu
    A signed banner at KMC School, Kathmandu.
When one woman rises, entire families, communities and generations rise with her.
Climb Your Everest
A trekker with a full pack pausing on the trail to look up at a snow-capped Himalayan peak

Help us lead our futures, one woman at a time

A gift pays school fees, funds a micro-loan, or puts a workbook in a girl's hands.

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