Since 2003, TPAF has provided support to Tibetan artisans and artisan enterprises to help with the improved design, quality and sale of their products in the Tibetan tourist trade. Increased artisan employment and income generation has been a major goal in this work. A related objective has been the preservation and promotion of Tibetan artistic and cultural traditions. During this period, the program provided support to over 500 Tibetan artisans, many employed in about 60 small artisan enterprises and cooperatives in Lhasa and in other prefectures of Tibet.  

To facilitate artisan access to the tourist market, TPAF established the Dropenling Handicraft Development Center in Lhasa with its emporium outlet as a legally registered local (social) enterprise. In addition to the retailing of authentic Tibetan artisan products to tourists, the Center included capacity to help Tibetan artisans to improve the design and quality of their products, and to provide small business management training to artisan enterprises. The value of artisan products sold at the emporium increased from about $15,000 in 2003 to $195,000 in 2006. TPAF expects artisan product sales and revenues to increase about 30 percent more in 2007.  

External donor assistance has enabled the Dropenling Center to expand the capacity of its foreign and Tibetan staff to provide product training and advisory services to artisans, and to manage the increasing sale of products at the emporium, but also at locations in Beijing and Shanghai. In October-November 2007, Dropenling also intends to launch an e-commerce website to facilitate sales of artisan products abroad in the winter season without local tourists.

In 2008, the intention is to further expand Dropenling outreach and support to Tibetan artisans in a continued effort to increase the production and sale of products of proven appeal to tourists from all parts of Tibet. A parallel effort will be to train artisans to produce and help preserve traditional Tibetan products of cultural significance with potential appeal to Chinese and foreign tourists.

TPAF hopes that the Dropenling Handicraft Development Center will operate as a locally owned and managed social enterprise with little or no international assistance after 2008. Further information on some of the artisans and their products can be seen on the Dropenling website www.tibetcraft.com, which is currently being developed further as an e-commerce site.