Sabriye Tenberken (German)
At age 12 Sabriye became blind. She studied Central Asian Sciences at Bonn University. While
studying Tibetology, Sabriye developed a Braille Script for the Tibetan language which later was
acknowledged as the standard. Sabriye initiated the first school for the blind in Tibet and is the co-
founder of Braille Without Borders and kanthari, formerly known as the International Institute for Social Entrepreneurs (IISE) in Trivandrum, Kerala, South India.
Sabriye is the author of “My path leads to Tibet” a bestseller that has been translated into 13
languages and starred in the award winning documentary ‘BLINDSIGHT’. Sabriye has a keen
interest in horseback riding, white water kayaking and writing.
Awards and Recognitions include amongst others;
2011 – INCITE Excellence in Social Entrepreneurship Award (board members include Dr Abdul Kalam)
2008 – Gov. of China: One of 15 most influential overseas experts over the past 30 years in China.
2005 – World Economic Forum, Davos (WEF). “Young Global Leader”
2005 – Sabriye was nominated for the Nobel Peace Price.
Paul Kronenberg (Dutch)
Paul Kronenberg is a “Social-Engineer” and co-founder of Braille Without Borders (BWB) as well as kanthari, formerly known as the International Institute for Social Entrepreneurs (IISE), focusing on the running and operational management of both. Paul has a technical background graduating in mechanical engineering, computer science, commercial technology and communication system science. Paul has a keen interest in eco friendly low cost “open source hardware” technologies and architecture.
Awards and Recognitions include amongst others;
2007 – On behalf of BWB, Paul was awarded with the Mother Theresa award
2005 – National Fundraising Award 2005
2003 – Queen of Holland awarded Paul the “Knighthood in the order of Oranje Nassau”
2002 – Wolfgang von Goethe Association awarded Paul with the Albert Schweizer Award.