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Factbox

In the summer of 1997, Sabriye Tenberken, a German woman who lost her sight at the age of 13, traveled within the Tibet autonomous region to investigate the possibility of providing training for Tibetan blind and visually impaired people.

Sabriye realized there was a big need for the education and rehabilitation of blind people in the autonomous region, and she and a Dutch friend Paul Kronenberg decided that they would try and help meet that need.

Braille Without Borders in Lhasa was established in 1998, providing blind people with elementary braille courses.

The Braille Without Borders vocational school, where Parent works, was established in 2004. It is located 250 kilometers west of Lhasa in Baishung township in Xigaze prefecture.

It is an extension of the school in Lhasa, and is a vocational training center for students who graduate from the school in Lhasa.

As well as organic farming and animal husbandry, the school provides courses in cheese making, baking, braille book production, Tibetan handicrafts, knitting and weaving.