Following her visits to remote areas of the country, the late Princess Mother discovered that the ethnic minorities in Northern Thailand were disenfranchised---poor, lacking citizenship and the right to live on the land they farmed, they were often preyed and taken advantage of by opportunist. They were caught in a downward spiral of sickness, poverty, and ignorance. The Princess Mother was aware of their ability in craftsmanship, and as a means of supplementing their income, wanted to help market their work. With seed funding from her personal donation of 100,000 baht, the Princess Mother set up the "Thai Hill Crafts Foundation" in 1972. Her initiative was quite successful, as handicrafts by the ethnic minorities became popular both at home and abroad.

Thirteen years later, the mandate of the Foundation expanded to cover youth development and the conservation of Lanna art and culture. With the new role, it was renamed the Mae Fah Luang Foundation under the Royal Patronage of HRH Princess Srinagarindra. It was not until 1988 that the Mae Fah Luang Foundation undertook a comprehensive development project in the Doi Tung area to tackle opium cultivation at its root cause--- poverty and lack of opportunity. Today, this work has become the internationally recognized Sustainable Alternative Livelihood Development model.