Trace Foundation
Trace Foundation is a private nonprofit foundation established in 1993 and headquartered in New York, supporting Tibetan communities through scholarships, the Latse Library, cultural programming, and community development on the Tibetan Plateau. The foundation has suspended active operations.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1993
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Trace Foundation does
Trace Foundation is a private nonprofit foundation established in 1993 by Andrea E. Soros (Soros Colombel) and headquartered in New York City, with a programmatic focus on supporting the continuity, development, and vitality of Tibetan communities on the Tibetan Plateau. Its core offerings include a multi-tier scholarship program (domestic and international), the wholly-owned Latse Library subsidiary holding over 18,000 trilingual catalog items (English, Tibetan, Chinese) plus a digital photo archive and oral history archive, and cultural-programming initiatives such as the Gaton event series and the Transcending Tibet exhibition. The foundation has co-developed joint graduate scholarship programs with academic institutions including SIT, Brandeis, UW-Madison, Bard, and Victoria University Melbourne.
The foundation operates on a grant- and donor-funded nonprofit model rather than a commercial revenue model. The primary funding source has historically been the founder's personal support, supplemented by external grants; the only commercial revenue stream identified is the sale of the Transcending Tibet exhibition catalog via PayPal (with tiered international shipping from $56 to $100) and distribution of other publications through Blurb and Lulu. The foundation communicates through a multilingual website, social channels (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram), the Künpen Tamsar quarterly newsletter, and year-round public events hosted at the New York headquarters.
Since its founding, Trace Foundation has invested over $70 million in programmatic work, supported more than 5,000 individuals through scholarships (including 1,750 women), trained 3,500+ teachers, established 5 university-level Tibetan-language majors, and published and distributed 1 million books to 900 schools, universities, monasteries, and libraries. In 2015 the foundation announced the suspension of its activities, including the formal end of its scholarship program, citing the diminishing feasibility of local project implementation; the live website reflects this status and is dated to 2016.
Trace Foundation firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Trace Foundation
- Legal name
- Trace Foundation
- Website
- https://trace.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1993
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Trace Foundation is a private nonprofit foundation established in 1993 and headquartered in New York, supporting Tibetan communities through scholarships, the Latse Library, cultural programming, and community development on the Tibetan Plateau. The foundation has suspended active operations.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Trace Foundation industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Cultural and Educational Nonprofit Foundation
- NAICS
- Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Arts, Culture & Humanities Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB), Foundation/NGO & Philanthropic Scholarships (EDAIAOAH), International Grantmaking & Development Foundations (BPAGAKAH)
Keywords
Where Trace Foundation is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Trace Foundation business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Transcending Tibet Exhibition Catalog (260-page, trilingual) |
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Trace Foundation product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Trace Foundation is a nonprofit foundation supporting Tibetan communities through educational scholarships (domestic and international), the Latse Library (a specialized library for modern Tibetan studies with trilingual holdings), publications (exhibition catalogs, anniversary reports, dictionaries), and community development grants on the Tibetan Plateau. Core offerings also include cultural event series such as Gaton and the History of Tibetan Civilization Talk Series. Founded in 1993, the foundation invests in education, cultural preservation, and community work primarily through direct program implementation and grants to individuals and institutions.
Product overview
Trace Foundation is a nonprofit organization operating a unified portfolio of cultural and educational programs for Tibetan communities. The core offerings include: the Scholarships Program providing domestic and international support for Tibetan students at graduate and professional levels; Latse Library offering thousands of resources in three languages for researchers and community members; and various publications including the Transcending Tibet exhibition catalog and the Twentieth-Anniversary Report. The foundation also hosts cultural events through Gaton and educational talk series such as The History of Tibetan Civilization.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Transcending Tibet: 2015 exhibition featuring 30 Tibetan artists
- Gaton
Products and services
- Scholarships Program A comprehensive scholarship program providing domestic and international scholarships to Tibetan students for graduate and professional studies in fields including education, law, business, science, technology, environmental studies, and TESOL; also includes professional training scholarships, early childhood education fellowships, and alumni project grants.
- Latse Library A specialized library for modern Tibetan studies offering over 18,000 resources in three languages (English, Tibetan, Chinese) including digitized rare audio recordings, fragile periodicals, newspapers, and a photo archive; hosts year-round public events and serves researchers and community members globally via www.latse.org and on-site in New York.
- Transcending Tibet Catalog A 260-page trilingual exhibition catalog (English, Tibetan, Chinese) documenting contemporary Tibetan art from a 2015 exhibition featuring 30 artists, available for purchase via PayPal with domestic and international shipping.
- Gaton Event Series An ongoing event series celebrating contemporary Tibetan culture through exhibitions, talks, and cultural programs hosted via gaton.trace.org.
- History of Tibetan Civilization Talk Series A series of talks by historian Elliot Sperling providing an overview of Tibetan history and civilization from antiquity to modern times.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 5,000 individuals supported through scholarships
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Trace Foundation
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Trace Foundation technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Trace Foundation partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- SIT Graduate Institute (School for International Training)coreJoint initiative Trace–SIT Masters in TESOL (TSTESOL): scholarship supporting qualified English teachers to complete a one-year master's degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages at the SIT Graduate Institute. Aims to form a core group of highly qualified English teaching professionals in county and prefecture-level schools on the Tibetan Plateau.
- Brandeis University School of International DevelopmentcoreJoint Trace–Brandeis Scholarship for Women in International Development (TBWID): supports early- and mid-career Tibetan women in development for graduate training in international development at Brandeis University.
- University of Wisconsin–Madison Nelson Institute for Environmental StudiescoreJoint Trace–UW Graduate Scholarship in Environmental Conservation (TUWSEC): trains candidates in applied conservation skills (conservation planning, science communications, program evaluation, entrepreneurship, adaptation) as they relate to issues affecting the Tibetan Plateau.
- Bard College Center for Environmental PolicycoreJoint Trace–Bard Graduate Scholarship in Environmental Studies (TBGSES): supports environmental conservation professionals rooted in local Tibetan realities for advanced training in environmental sciences at Bard College.
- Victoria University, Melbourne, AustraliacoreJoint Trace–Victoria Graduate Degree Studies in Education at Victoria University (TVUEDU): supports qualified teaching professionals for advanced studies in education (MEd or PhD) at the College of Education, Victoria University. Two-year MEd and three-year PhD programs.
- Columbia University (Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures and Weatherhead East Asian Institute)coreCo-hosted the Third International Conference on Tibetan Language at Columbia University with 11 panels of over 60 scholars and linguists from around the world addressing the history, current situation, and viability of the Tibetan language.
- Shang Shung InstitutecoreCo-organized the Third International Conference on Tibetan Language with Trace Foundation, Columbia University, Shang Shung Institute, Weatherhead East Asian Institute, and TBRC.
- TBRC (Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center)coreCo-organized the Third International Conference on Tibetan Language with Trace Foundation, Columbia University, Shang Shung Institute, Weatherhead East Asian Institute, and TBRC.
- TBRC (Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center) — Gene SmithcoreGene Smith, founder of TBRC, worked for nearly 60 years preserving thousands of Tibetan texts and establishing Tibetan studies as a modern academic field. His work led to the largest archives of Tibetan religious literature and application of latest technologies to Tibetan literature.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Trace Foundation competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Rubin Museum of Art: New York museum historically dedicated to Himalayan art (with a strong Tibetan focus) hosting exhibitions, public programs, and scholarship. Comparable as an institutional venue and programmatic peer for Tibetan cultural events, publications, and curatorial work, though at broader scale and with a wider Himalayan remit.
- Asia Society: Major New York–based nonprofit leading public education on Asian arts, cultures, and policy through exhibitions, lectures, and programs. Comparable in operating model (NYC headquarters, multilingual public events, publications, library-adjacent resources) and partial mission overlap on Tibet/Himalayan cultural programming.
Regional players
- Dharma Drum Mountain Buddhist Association: Large international Buddhist nonprofit combining meditation centers, academic publishing, and cultural preservation programming. Comparable in role as a religion- and culture-rooted educational foundation running publications, retreats, and academic programs — though rooted in a different (Chinese Mahayana) tradition and with a global rather than Plateau-specific geography.
Direct peers
- Shang Shung Institute: Cultural and educational nonprofit dedicated to preserving and promoting Tibetan civilization through publications, conferences, and academic programs. Directly comparable as a co-organizer of the Third International Conference on Tibetan Language and as a peer in international Tibetan cultural-preservation grantmaking.
- The Tibet Fund: Nonprofit supporting Tibetan refugees and communities through education, cultural preservation, and community development grants. Comparable as a direct peer operating in the same Tibetan-education-and-cultural-preservation grantmaking space with scholarship and institutional support programs.
- Library of Tibetan Works and Archives: Dharamsala-based library and archive preserving Tibetan texts and supporting scholarship, research, and translation. Comparable as a specialized Tibetan-studies library/archive and cultural preservation institution serving the same researcher and community base as Latse Library.
- American Himalayan Foundation: US-based foundation funding education, healthcare, and cultural preservation across the Himalayan region including Tibetan communities in Nepal and the Plateau. Directly comparable as a grantmaking foundation serving overlapping communities, geographies, and programmatic areas (scholarships, schools, cultural preservation).
- Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center (TBRC): Nonprofit digital archive preserving Tibetan religious and literary texts at scale, built around a founder's (Gene Smith) decades-long cataloging effort. Comparable as a peer institution that digitizes and provides access to Tibetan-language materials for global researchers, and a former co-organizer with Trace on academic conferences.
- Tibet House New York: New York–based cultural center promoting Tibetan culture through exhibits, lectures, performances, and educational programs. Directly comparable in mission (Tibetan cultural preservation), geography (NYC headquarters), and programming mix (events, library-adjacent resources, public lectures).
Others
- Andrea Soros Foundation / Soros foundations network: Although not a direct functional peer, the founder (Andrea Soros Colombel) is connected to a family foundation network that funds international development, education, and cultural preservation worldwide. Comparable as a potential institutional partner, successor vehicle, or model for how Trace's programs could continue under a larger umbrella.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Trace Foundation social profiles
Digital presenceTrace Foundation financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Trace Foundation leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Trace Foundation subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Trace Foundation funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Trace Foundation M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Trace Foundation
What does Trace Foundation do?
Trace Foundation is a nonprofit foundation supporting Tibetan communities through educational scholarships (domestic and international), the Latse Library (a specialized library for modern Tibetan studies with trilingual holdings), publications (exhibition catalogs, anniversary reports, dictionaries), and community development grants on the Tibetan Plateau. Core offerings also include cultural event series such as Gaton and the History of Tibetan Civilization Talk Series. Founded in 1993, the foundation invests in education, cultural preservation, and community work primarily through direct program implementation and grants to individuals and institutions.
Is Trace Foundation a public or private company?
Trace Foundation is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Trace Foundation founded?
Trace Foundation was founded in 1993. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Trace Foundation based?
Trace Foundation is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Trace Foundation's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Rubin Museum of Art and Asia Society. Dharma Drum Mountain Buddhist Association is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are Shang Shung Institute, The Tibet Fund, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, American Himalayan Foundation, Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center (TBRC) and Tibet House New York. Andrea Soros Foundation / Soros foundations network is listed as an others.
Does Trace Foundation have an API?
No public API is recorded for Trace Foundation.
What industry is Trace Foundation in?
Trace Foundation's product category is Cultural and Educational Nonprofit Foundation. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGAKAJ, Arts, Culture & Humanities Grantmaking Foundations, with a secondary code of BPAGAKAB, Community Foundations. Its NAICS code is 813211 and its SIC code is 8300.