- Dr John M Templeton Jr presents the 2012 Templeton Prize to His Holiness the Dalai Lama at St Paul’s Cathedral in London on 14 May 2012/Photo/Clifford Shirley
DHARAMSHALA: Save the Children Fund in India has thanked His Holiness the Dalai Lama for donating bulk of his Templeton prize money for their efforts to realise the full potential of vulnerable children through education and health care.
“In selecting Save the Children as a beneficiary, His Holiness has spoken of his admiration for the work of Save the Children and its tireless efforts over the years to improve the world for young children,” Save the Children said in a statement.
“Save the Children is honoured to accept this generous humanitarian gift, which will be used to save the lives of some of the world’s most vulnerable children.
“In line with the Dalai Lama’s wishes, the funds will be used on programmes which tackle malnutrition in India. Save the Children is at the forefront of the fight against malnutrition – one of the biggest causes of deaths of young children across the globe.
“This donation will be used practically, to help many more children survive, grow and as the Dalai Lama said realise their full potential,” it said.
Save the Children is an international organisation working for children’s rights in 120 countries. In India, they are working across 12 states to ensure that every child has a happy and healthy childhood.
His Holiness the Dalai Lama donated $1.5 million out of his $1.7 million Templeton Prize money to Save the Children Fund specifically to address the problems of malnourishment among children in India.
His Holiness said he had long had great admiration for the work of Save the Children and had personal experience of the support it had given Tibetans during their early years in exile.
His Holiness hopes that if we educate and care for the children of the coming generation, the generation who carry the future on their shoulders, we can really change the world.
The 2012 Templeton Prize was awarded to His Holiness the Dalai Lama for his exceptional contribution towards encouraging serious scientific investigative reviews of the power of compassion and its broad potential to address the world’s fundamental problems.
