surgery-for-400-kids-in-2021 Niko von Glasow Foundation
What We Do
For years, we have helped children in Vietnam by providing life-changing surgeries and long-term support. While this work remains important to us, we are now focusing on something new: helping young people, especially women, get a better education so they can build independent and secure lives.
Many young people grow up without access to good education or opportunities. Without the right support, they struggle to find stable jobs and financial independence. We want to change that. Our foundation helps young women continue their studies, learn new skills, and find careers that allow them to take control of their future. We provide scholarships, job training, and mentorship, and we also support families so that education remains a priority.
In the past, we have helped children in Vietnam get the medical care they needed, supported people with disabilities in building independent lives, and worked on projects around the world to help those who had no access to basic needs. That same spirit of care and commitment now drives our new mission—to give young people the chance to create a better future for themselves through education and opportunity.
To make this possible, we need your support. Every donation goes directly to helping young people get the education and training they need to succeed. I promise that I will pay all overhead, so every cent you give will go straight to those who need it.
How It All Began…
I was invited to a house in Saigon where families with very different disabilities live together and help each other. The blind carry the people who can’t walk, the deaf cook and together they make the best parties ever. Here I met Duyen. She and her two brothers are sitting in wheelchairs. I hired Duyen to find families with disabled children all over Vietnam and help them in a very unbureaucratic way. Duyens tough life made her the most compassionate and reliable specialist for the job.
We don’t only aim to heal the physical wounds or give short-term relief. When the surgery is done, we give long-term support to the whole family; pay for English lessons and training in creative skills, and do all we can to make sure our friends can support themselves and gain the security and happiness they deserve. Now, we are spreading our wings and additionally focusing on empowering young girls and women to gain education and help them become financially independent.
About Niko
I was born in 1960 in Cologne, Germany, and I am one of the survivors of Thalidomide. I was lucky to grow up in a loving and supportive family, which shaped my desire to help others.
After finishing high school, I started my journey by working to reunite immigrant families in Rwanda. Later, I found my way into the film industry, starting with simple jobs like carrying beer crates and making coffee for Rainer Werner Fassbinder. I went on to study film at New York University and The Film Academy in Łódź, Poland. Over the years, I directed and produced eight films, making me one of the very few film directors with a physical disability.
One of my most recognized films, Nobody’s Perfect, explored the lives of Thalidomide survivors. In the film, we openly discussed our experiences while posing for a nude calendar. It won the German Film Award and led to a major campaign that secured a €2.7 billion compensation payment from the German government for Thalidomide survivors.
Despite my success in filmmaking, I became increasingly frustrated with the entertainment industry's treatment of people with disabilities. I decided to step away and focus on making a real impact in other ways.
Over the years, I have founded a free film school in the Himalayas, helped visually impaired orphans in the Philippines, and freed children with disabilities from prisons in Manila.
Now, my focus is on helping young people, especially women, gain access to education and opportunities for financial independence. I believe that education is the key to breaking cycles of poverty and creating lasting change. Through our foundation, we provide scholarships, training, and mentorship to help people build better futures.
This work is only possible with the support of others. If you would like to help, please consider donating or spreading the word. Every contribution makes a difference!
Contact Us
The Niko von Glasow Foundation gGmbH
Register number: HRB 219716 B
Schönhauser Allee 10, 10119 Berlin, Germany
Donate via bank transfer:
IBAN: DE87430609671072526700
BIC/SWIFT: GENODEM1GLS
Account holder: Niko von Glasow Foundation gGmbH