Buddhist Tzu Chi Foundation is an international humanitarian nonprofit founded in 1966 in Hualien, Taiwan, by Dharma Master Cheng Yen. Its mission is to relieve suffering and create a better world through charity, medicine, education, environmental protection, international relief, and the development of a large bone marrow donor registry. The organization is rooted in Buddhist philosophy and presents its work as an expression of compassion applied to the needs of humanity.