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6 questions for Greg Mortenson, director of Central Asia Institute

The Rocky

Published January 19, 2008 at 12:05 a.m.

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Greg Mortenson, author of Three Cups of Tea, is in Colorado to talk about the schools he founded in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Photo by Photo Courtesy Greg Mortenson

Greg Mortenson, author of Three Cups of Tea, is in Colorado to talk about the schools he founded in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

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It's customary in Pakistan and Afghanistan to drink three cups of tea over business: the first, you're a stranger; the second, a friend; and by the third, family.

Greg Mortenson consumes as many as 40 cups of tea daily when he visits those countries to help build schools for children living in the rugged terrain that gave rise to the Taliban.

But when the author of the best-seller Three Cups of Tea meets a Rocky Mountain News reporter for tea this week, the first order of business is a bear hug for his interviewer. The soft-spoken Mortenson, 50, already seems familiar, perhaps because he has spilled much of his life story over the 330-plus pages of his page-turning adventure tale.

It's been more than 14 years since the mountaineer got lost trying to climb K2 and wandered into a remote village where children with no teacher scratched math lessons into the dirt with sticks. His dogged campaign to promote peace by raising money for education has gained momentum now that his book has spent 50 weeks on The New York Times' best-seller list and just surpassed sales of 1 million copies.

He spoke to overflow crowds in Colorado Springs, Boulder and Evergreen this week in hopes of keeping the donations coming.

Some excerpts from his conversation with Rocky reporter Joanne Kelley:

You had trouble raising money at first. Has that changed?

Last year, we raised $4.2 million, more than double the $1.8 million donated the year before. It's mostly because of the book, but I've also visited 134 cities in 16 months and talked to 60,000 people. My goal is to build a $20 million endowment so the interest can sustain the work overseas and our nonprofit in Boze- man, Montana. It costs about $50,000 to build and run a school. We've built 64 so far and support about three dozen others. And we're providing scholarships for higher education and community assistance.

Have Coloradans been any more receptive than others?

There is a mountain-to- mountain connection. Our Colorado supporters give more, an average of $200 vs. our typical average gift of $75. Americans seem to be yearning for peace and the book appeals to a diverse group - feminist groups, Republican prayer breakfasts, book clubs, the Jewish community, the Islamic community, church groups. The Pentagon bought thousands of copies for counterintelligence training. U.S. military soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan are reading it.

How much does your Evergreen-based "Pennies for Peace" program contribute?

It's about showing U.S. schoolchildren that anybody can make a difference. One of the first donations I received: $623 in pennies collected by the elementary school in Wisconsin where my mother is the principal. In 2007, children raised $100,000 by collecting 10 million pennies.

Why do you emphasize schools for girls?

Educated women refuse to let their sons join the Taliban, which targets impoverished, illiterate society. When they become mothers they won't endorse and support that - so extremists lose their ideological way to get recruits. We can spend money on bombs, roads, electricity and condoms, but until we invest in girls' education, nothing will change.

How do you keep at it year after year?

I'm an eternal optimist, and we're at a critical point. I once thought I couldn't do it anymore when the criticism and threats against my family started. My wife says it's a mandate to get out in public to talk about my work. I've told her if you ever want me to stop doing this, I will. She tells me I wouldn't be the man she married if I did.

What have you given up?

I get so passionate and so driven, it's a blessing and a curse. I have little savings - about $15,000 in retirement money - and I'm separated from my wife and two young kids for long periods. I've been overseas for 65 months. I won't say I'm willing to risk my life, but it's so critical that education be a top priority that I'm willing to make sacrifices - even if it puts me in the nut category.