What 17000ft Foundation does

17000ft Foundation is a non-profit NGO that delivers quality education to children living in remote frontier villages of the Indian Himalayan Region (Ladakh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh), where families historically migrated away because no quality schooling existed near their homes. The foundation operates across 450+ government schools and serves 150,000+ children through a portfolio of programs: DigiLab@17000ft (a solar-powered off-grid, off-network Ed-tech stack using Raspberry Pi servers, tablets, and LED TVs with syllabus-aligned digital content), Libraries@17000ft (with Bhoti-language titles in partnership with Pratham Books and Scholastic), Infrastructure@17000ft (school transformation including playgrounds, furniture, and anganwadi upgrades), TeacherTraining@17000ft, FLN@17000ft (Foundational Literacy and Numeracy under the NIPUN Bharat Mission), Bhoti@17000ft (local language preservation), and Voluntourist@17000ft (a fee-based 10-day program connecting paying travelers to remote village schools).

The organization is funded through three revenue streams: individual donations, corporate CSR partnerships (notably Axis Bank for school adoption), and voluntourist program fees. Beneficiaries (children and government schools) are not charged. The foundation has formal partnerships with the UT Government of Ladakh and DIETs in Leh and Kargil, holds FCRA registration enabling foreign contributions, and is governed by co-founders Sandeep Sahu and Dawa Jora with an advisory board including former University of Hyderabad Vice Chancellor Ramakrishna Ramaswamy and PE veteran Luis Miranda. Reported impact metrics include a 50% fall in dropout/migration and 30% average enrollment increase in adopted schools, with 20% learning improvement attributed to DigiLab. The stated goal is to reach 500,000 children in the Indian Himalayan Region by 2030.

Name

17000ft Foundation

Legal name

17000ft Foundation

Website

https://17000ft.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

17000ft Foundation is a non-profit NGO that delivers quality education to 150,000+ children in 450+ remote government schools across Ladakh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh through a solar-powered off-grid Ed-tech platform (DigiLab), libraries, infrastructure upgrades, and teacher training programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Non-profit Rural Education Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

K–12 Support & School Improvement Nonprofits (BPAGADAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

NGO/Nonprofit Education Programs & Service Delivery (EDADALAC), Education Access & Quality (International Development) (BPAGABAE), Title I & Compensatory Education Programs (EDAJAGAJ)

Keywords

• Rural education
• Off-grid edtech
• School adoption
• Teacher training
• Voluntourism programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Gurugram

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: Individual donations and charitable contributions from supporters who believe in the cause of providing quality education in remote Himalayan regions.
2. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Partnerships: Partnerships with corporations who fund school adoption programs, infrastructure projects, and specific initiatives like DigiLab installations. Companies like Axis Bank have partnered for school transformation.
3. Voluntourist Programs: Structured 10-day programs for individual voluntourists and tailored programs for school and corporate groups. Programs include training, travel to remote areas, village homestay accommodation, and volunteering work at local schools. Generates income opportunities for local communities.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

17000ft Foundation is a non-profit NGO that delivers quality education programs to government schools in remote Himalayan villages of Ladakh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh. Its core offerings include a solar-powered off-grid digital learning solution (DigiLab), school libraries, infrastructure upgrades, teacher training, foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) programs, early childhood care (ECCE/Anganwadi), and paid voluntourism experiences, all delivered through government school partnerships.

Product overview

17000ft Foundation operates a multi-module education program portfolio for remote schools in the Indian Himalayan Region. The core offerings include DigiLab@17000ft (solar-powered off-grid Ed-tech solution with tablets and digital content), Libraries@17000ft (reading resources with local Bhoti language books), Infrastructure@17000ft (school transformation with playgrounds and furniture), TeacherTraining@17000ft (pedagogy training for teachers), FLN@17000ft (Foundational Literacy and Numeracy aligned with NIPUN Bharat), and Voluntourist@17000ft (volunteer tourism for school support). Additional programs include Bhoti@17000ft (local language preservation), Communities@17000ft (community mobilization), and ECCE/Anganwadi@17000ft (early childhood education). The programs are delivered through three transformation approaches: School Transformation (adopting schools), Community Transformation (mobilizing local participation), and System Transformation (working with government for scalable reforms). Currently operational in Ladakh, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh across 450+ remote schools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Libraries@17000ft: Library program aimed at improving reading skills of children in hard-to-reach schools
• DigiLab@17000ft
• Infrastructure@17000ft
• TeacherTraining@17000ft
• ECCE@17000ft
• FLN@17000ft
• Voluntourist@17000ft
• Bhoti@17000ft
• Communities@17000ft
• Anganwadi@17000ft
• NIPUN Bharat Mission

Products and services

• DigiLab@17000ft A solar-powered off-grid Ed-tech solution that brings digital learning to remote government schools with limited or no internet connectivity, using Raspberry Pi local servers to host curriculum-aligned content. Targeted at students and teachers in frontier Himalayan villages.
• Libraries@17000ft Sets up and stocks libraries in partner government schools in remote Himalayan villages to cultivate reading habits and provide age-appropriate literature to children.
• Infrastructure@17000ft Physical infrastructure development and upgrades for government schools in frontier Himalayan villages, including repairs, construction, and facilities improvements to create safer learning environments.
• TeacherTraining@17000ft Capacity-building program for government school teachers, providing curriculum and pedagogy training tailored to remote Himalayan classroom contexts.
• FLN@17000ft (Foundational Literacy and Numeracy) Foundational literacy and numeracy program for early-grade students in government schools, aligned with India's National Education Policy 2020 focus on basic reading and arithmetic outcomes.
• Voluntourist@17000ft Paid voluntourism program where individual participants travel to remote Himalayan villages to contribute to school programs while experiencing local culture and landscape.
• ECCE/Anganwadi@17000ft Early childhood care and education program delivered through Anganwadi centers serving children aged 0-6 in remote Himalayan communities.
• Bhoti@17000ft Mother-tongue Bhoti language education program designed to support Ladakhi students in foundational literacy using their home language.
• Communities@17000ft Community engagement and mobilization program that works with parents, village leaders, and local bodies to strengthen support for school education in remote Himalayan villages.

Quantifiable outcome

• 150,000+ children provided access to Quality Education near their homes
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Govt. of UT of LadakhflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Formal partnership with UT Government of Ladakh for improving Foundational Literacy and Numeracy in government schools. 17000ft collaborates with DIETs of Leh and Kargil for institutionalizing FLN program.
• Pratham BookscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for translating children's books into the local Bhoti language for distribution across 300+ schools in Ladakh. Helps preserve local language while promoting reading habits.
• Scholastic PublisherscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for sourcing children's books and educational content, including Bhoti language translations for schools across Ladakh.
• DIET (District Institute of Education and Trainings) - Leh and KargilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with DIETs for institutionalizing the FLN Program by strengthening UT Level Master Trainers and Primary teachers on FLN pedagogy.

Scale indicators22 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Educate Girls: India-focused non-profit driving enrollment, retention, and learning outcomes for girls in rural and remote government schools. Comparable on government school adoption model and outcome-driven K-12 interventions in hard-to-reach geographies.
• Room to Read: Global education NGO focused on literacy and gender equality in low-income communities. Comparable on library programs, local-language children's content, and literacy-focused school support; operates at significantly larger scale across multiple countries.
• Naandi Foundation: Large Indian non-profit working on education, safe drinking water, and livelihoods with operations in remote and tribal areas. Comparable on rural school transformation, CSR-funded model, and government co-delivery.
• Magic Bus Foundation: India-focused non-profit working with adolescents from disadvantaged communities through education and livelihood programs. Comparable on CSR-driven funding model, government school engagement, and outcome-based community programs.
• Smile Foundation: Indian non-profit delivering education, healthcare, and livelihoods through programs including Mission Education for underprivileged children. Comparable on CSR-funded school support programs and multi-region Indian footprint.
• Pratham Education Foundation: One of India's largest education NGOs, operating foundational literacy and numeracy programs across rural and underserved India. Directly comparable to 17000ft on mission (K-12 learning outcomes) and target beneficiary (disadvantaged children), though at much larger national scale.
• RoundGlass Foundation: Punjab/Himalaya-focused philanthropy that funds education, sports, and wellness programs in underserved regions. Comparable to 17000ft in regional Himalayan focus and integrated school-transformation approach, with a similar multi-program portfolio.
• Sikshana Foundation: Indian non-profit focused on improving learning outcomes in government schools through teacher training and supplementary programs. Comparable on K-12 government school improvement model, though primarily Karnataka-based.

Broad incumbents

• Save the Children India: Large international NGO with broad child welfare programming including education in remote and disaster-affected Indian regions. Comparable as a much larger incumbent operating across multiple states with formal CSR and institutional donor relationships.

Others

• Taktse International School: Student-centered school in Sikkim founded by board member Peter Denjongpa. Comparable geographic and educational philosophy overlap, though it operates a single formal school rather than government school adoption across many villages.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/17000ft
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@17000ftihr
• Facebookfacebook.com/17000ft
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/17000-ft-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/17000ft

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about 17000ft Foundation