IHCenter Member Group

The Horse Boy is a project that addresses the new pandemic of autism (one child in 150 is now affected), the need for indigenous tribes to gain secure tenure of their ancestral lands, and the common problem of climate change and pollution.

The story is as follows: in 2004 my son Rowan was diagnosed with autism. Since then he has reacted radically and positively to two things (among his myriad other therapes and treatments): riding horses (he has a special relationship with my quarter horse mare, Betsy), and exposure to traditional, shamanic healing. The latter has come because Rowan has had to accompany me to many far flung places in the world as part of my job as a human rights advocate for tribal peoples [www.landrightsfund.org].

So while Rowan is still small enough to sit in front of me in the saddle I am taking him to the one place on the planet that combine horses and shamanism and healing at the center of the culture.

The film and book we create from this will be released in 2008. The film will be screened at major festivals throughout the USA and Europe. We will be raising awareness about autism and much-needed funding for both a central, dedicated autism resource center in Texas (a resource that is currently lacking), and for a nature and equine-based autism school, Big Sky.

Meanwhile the Buryat and Tshataan tribes, whose shamans will be working on Rowan, want to have their land declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site as a shamanic landscape. My organisation, the Indigenous Land Rights Fund, has won similar cases before and will help them with this.

Finally, in terms of climate change and pollution: it is now clear that the spike in autism numbers has largely come about as a result of air pollution (mercury from coal fired power plants being especially cuplable). By protecting a vital watershed area (the proposed UNESCO World Heritage Site in Mongolia includes vital mountain watersheds and forests in East Siberia, which in turn provide clean air and water for both Asia and North America).

Help us make The Horse Boy

For more detailed information see our website: www.horseboymovie.com

To view a 5 minute video clip of Rowan and Betsy please click here.

To make an online credit card donation without establishing a PayPal ID, enter your desired contribution below. [For donations exceeding $3,000, please email donations@ihcenter.org]	Donation Amount
Donation to IHCenter/The Horse Boy