About
Built on Respect has been a mantra for alt-culture personality heidiminx for years. It graced the hang tags of her fashion line, Franky & Minx, and continues to be her driving mission, “Treating people with respect, and sewing the seeds of fairness creates solidarity”
It was with this attitude that Minx did volunteer work in Haiti, and since 2008 in Dharamsala, India. On her first visit, Minx volunteered in two communities; she helped oversee the development of an online store that taught computer and English skills to her rural students, which ultimately saved the school from closing. In addition, she worked in the Tibetan community, teaching English to refugees at the Hope Center, a fledgling community organization.
Upon her return to the US, Minx began to explore charitable initiatives. The human rights violations she heard from her students spurned a desire to return, and to leverage and share her business contacts, her award-winning marketing skills, her DIY approach, and the support of her influential musician friends to gain awareness. Built on Respect is a registered 501c3.
On her subsequent trips, Minx worked solely within the Tibetan community. She continued to support the Hope Center, working with board members on marketing and sustainability. She also worked with Jamtse in Action, a fledgling group that supports the elders at the Jampaling elders home and The Institute for Tibetan Thangka Art; a free school that keeps traditional Tibetan art alive. In addition, she worked with several local artists and activists to help develop their non-profits, met frequently with NGOs to discuss marketing and development, and also sponsored English classes for the monks of Ganden Monastery, all while teaching English and participating in conversation classes.
She worked with SamaSource and brought an outsource work center into Dharamsala. She has met with the Tibetan Prime Minister and is continuing to work with Tibetan Government-in-exile to spread this business and training model throughout India’s 35 TIbetan refugee communities.
In addition, Minx works to educate youth worldwide. She has secured and conducted numerous interviews, including HH the 17th Karmapa, and also took footage of the political and social events occurring in the village at that time. She has conduced numerous interviews with ex-political prisoners and the family of prisoners currently in laogai in Tibet. Her continuing theme in these interviews is calling youth to action.
In March 2011, Minx spent one month documenting 25 stories, the basis for the project, ‘Tattoos of Tibetan Refugees and Ex-Political Prisoners.’
It is Minx’s goal to embrace the DIY mentality, and to personally work to raise funds, and also to directly oversee their disbursement while documenting it, working side by side with different community organizations.
