To my dear SFT family, my mentors, and my friends,

They say that in our movement, time is measured not in years, but in the courage we pass from one hand to another. For the last ten years, I have had the profound honor of carrying a piece of that fire.

My journey with Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) began in 2016 as a campaigns intern—a young woman looking for a way to turn her ancestral ache into action. Today, as I prepare to step away from my role as Executive Director, I look back on a decade that has defined who I am.

I am writing to you today to share this transition, and to ask you to join me in a vital mission for this new chapter: reaching a $3000 goal to ensure the next generation of SFT leaders has the fuel to carry our vision forward.

The Skill of Hoping Together

I want to take you back to a summer evening in 2018, deep in the woods of Peterborough, Canada. We were gathered for an SFT Action Camp, and we were invited to participate in a "visioning" exercise: to close our eyes and truly, vividly imagine a Tibet that is free.

At 23 years old—already a devoted activist and a daughter of the diaspora—I realized in the stillness of that room that I was carrying a quiet, heavy secret. I believed in the struggle with every fiber of my being, but I hadn’t yet allowed myself to truly believe in the victory. To see a free Tibet felt like holding something almost too vast, too sacred to reach for.

But when I opened my eyes and saw the tears and the steady, radiant smiles of the young people surrounding me, everything changed. Their conviction became my strength. I understood in that moment that hope is not a luxury that simply finds us; it is a skill we build together, heart by heart.

A Lineage of Resistance

For me, this work has never been a career; it is an inheritance. I carry the memory of my grandfather, a resistance fighter who survived years as a political prisoner in Tibet, and the lessons of my parents who taught me that our skills and our energy are borrowed tools, meant to be returned to the cause of our people.

For the past decade, I have had the privilege of seeing your belief in SFT transform the "impossible" into reality. From the early days of starting a campus chapter in DC to the pride of leading thousands of voices through the streets of New York and beyond, we have stood together against empires and guarded the light of our heroes.

SFT youth activists helped pass historic U.S. legislation on Tibet, pressured major corporations like Google, Apple, and Thermo Fisher to end their complicity in Tibet’s occupation, made global headlines confronting Xi Jinping head-on, and mobilized global campaigns that shut down more than 70 Confucius Institutes and helped drive diplomatic boycotts of the Beijing Olympics. From parliament halls to the United Nations, from a university campus in the Netherlands to the streets of Dharamshala, our movement has shown that a small, scrappy group of activists can give one of the most powerful regimes in the world a run for its money.

It is because of you that I have seen this movement flourish; you have shown me that as long as we invest in the courage of our youth, the dream of a free Tibet will never fade.

The Torch and the Future

My chapter as Executive Director is coming to an end, but the fight for Tibet is only accelerating. The generation of youth leading SFT today is fierce, brilliant, and bold. They are already organized at the grassroots, ready to take on the responsibility of leadership with a fire that reminds me of my own first days.

But even the most passionate leadership needs a foundation. It is not fair to expect our youth to carry this massive movement without giving them the fuel to succeed. My final act in this role is to ensure that this "new guard" doesn't just survive, but thrives.

Your donation will directly fund:

Join Me One Last Time

I am asking my community—the people who have mentored me, laughed with me, and stood on the front lines with me—to help me reach this $3000 goal.

Whether it is $20, $50, or $100, your gift is a vote of confidence in the lineage of SFT. It is a way to say to the next generation: The mission of SFT is in your hands, and we are standing right behind you.

I have been so privileged to hold this faith with you for the last ten years. While my role is changing, my commitment to our freedom is unshakable. Thank you for being my family in this movement. Let’s ensure the flame burns brighter than ever for those who come next.

In Solidarity and With Appreciation,

Pema Doma and the Team at Students for a Free Tibet