An afternoon of two Distinguished Public Lectures on Bhutan, by the Former Prime Minister of Bhutan, His Excellency Dasho Tshering Tobgay, and the President of the Center for Bhutan Studies & Gross National Happiness, Dasho Karma Ura.

3:00-4:30pm His Excellency Dasho Tshering Tobgay will speak on The First Ten Years of Democracy: Reflections from Bhutan.

5:00-6:30pm Dasho Karma Ura will give a lecture on Development with Integrity: Bhutan’s development and its Gross National Happiness Index, chaired by the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford, Professor Louise Richardson. Discussants include Martine Durand (Chief Statistician, OECD) and James Foster (Professor of Economics and International Affairs at George Washington University.

This event is part of a larger conference taking place in Oxford during 8-10 January 2019. The International Society of Bhutan Studies (ISBS) launch conference is taking place at Magdalen College, seeking to develop the study of Bhutanese culture, life and nature in all aspects and encourage, inspire and motivate interest in lesser known aspects and promote and strengthen the areas of existing concentration. ISBS exists primarily to encourage academic exchange, among both Bhutanese and foreign scholars, and secondarily to contribute to the happiness of future generations.

Please visit the conference website to register: www.isbsbhutan.org/isbs-launch-conference