“The organization has given Afghan women like her a safe place to expand their hopes and dreams."
- The Huffington Post
“Team Ascend.. determined to conquer Afghanistan's highest peak.. a big enough challenge for experienced mountaineers, their goal is made that much harder as they have to climb and train in secret.”
-BBC
“People feel that women are not supposed to be mountain climbing, women are not supposed to go out of the house and we are changing this stereotype.”
- UK Climbing
“These women [are] helping to create an Afghan narrative of mountaineering that, above all, valued their own ideas of freedom—both on the mountains and off.”
-The Alpinist
Our Mission
Ascend develops young women into leaders through community service and the sport of mountain climbing.
We are dedicated to helping girls reach their potential. Our intensive athletics-based leadership training gives girls tools to discover the inherent value and potential in themselves and in others. Everything we do is designed to strengthen our participants in body and in mind. Our team members occupy a unique space in Afghan culture; they are role models because of their climbing achievements and their community activism.
