Society Switzerland Bhutan

    Special Events Training Cheesemakers from Bhutan in Switzerland 11.8. - 21.9.2023

    19.8.2023: Barbecue Residence of the Bhutan Mission in Geneva

    230826 Chambesy

    A big thank you to Ambassador Tenzin Rondel Wangchuk and his team for the wonderful invitation for a barbecue with the 4 cheesemakers from Bhutan at the residence of the Bhutan Mission in Geneva. A great opportunity for a lively exchange between the Bhutanese community and SSB-members.

    26.8.2023: Excursion „Bio Käserei Prättigau“ and „Graubünden Vivonda AG“ Jenaz

    Jenaz

    Visiting Jenaz with the the four cheesemakers from Bhutan and members of the „Society Society Switzerland - Bhutan“ and „Mountain Grassroot Association“. A big thank you to the „Bio Käserei Prättigau“ and „Graubünden Vivonda AG“ for the interesting guided tours and last but not least thank you Chimi Dema and Sherub Dorji (Gogona), Sonam Tshewang (Bumthang) and Sherab Dorji (Khemdro) for the excellent presentations about your work in Bhutan and your future plans .


    Dr. Françoise Pommaret: The Artistic Heritage of Bhutan and its Vitality

    Thursday, 6.7.2023, Pädagogische Hochschule Zürich (PHZH)

    230706 Pommaret 

    Dr. Françoise Pommaret was giving a talk in Zurich about „The Artistic Heritage of Bhutan and its Vitality“. For example, she was explaining how traditional arts like weaving textiles for Gho and Kira are influenced by new fashion trends and influencers. Another obvious example are the developments in the art of painting, where Voluntary Artists Studio Thimphu (VAST) has had a big influence on developing new ways of expressions based on the roots of Bhutanese culture.


    General Assembly 2023 Society Switzerland – Bhutan

    Saturday, March 25th, 2023, Generationenhaus Berne

    GA PIC

    Some impressions of the General Assembly 2023 of the Society Switzerland-Bhutan with the following highlights can be found under Memories (Photos: Markus Wild):

    * Dr. Pema Wangchuk: Insights in the Development of Bumthang Hospital
    * Q & A with HE Ambassador Tenzin R. Wangchuk
    * Dr. Andreas Galmarini: Build Back Better - Reconstruction of the Wangdue Phodrang Dzong
    Photos: Markus Wild
     

    Downloads


    A Movie by our member Marie-Noëlle Frei-Pont

    Link to the movie

    Marino Frei Film2


    Dr. Sonam Wangchuk: Ice, Fire & Floods: From global Issues to local Impacts like in Bhutan

    Thursday, 9.2.2023, Pädagogische Hochschule Zürich

    Sonam Wangchuk Event


    In his talk Dr, Sonam Wangchuk focused on how melting of permafrost in distant areas like Siberia can have severe local negative impacts around the world and on Bhutan's glaciers and glacier lakes.

     


    Snow Leopards in Bhutan by Dechen Lam

    Friday, December 16th, 2022, Songtsen House
     221216_Dechen_Lham.png

    Dechen Lham (PhD candidate at the University of Zurich) was presenting her research results about the snow leopard in Bhutan.

    Like the wolf in Switzerland, the snow leopard is not well liked by the farmers in the mountains, where it seasonally kills people's herd animals.

    The estimates about the number of snow leopards roaming in the Himalayas is very vague. Only in Bhutan we now know better, thanks to the research project of Dechen and her colleagues. With its 250 animals, Bhutan has an important bridging function to the populations of snow leopards in Tibet and India.

    This was the last event of the Society Switzerland-Bhutan in the old year. Thank you Songtsen House and especially Daniel Aufschläger for the good collaboration.


    Commemoration of 20 Years of Bhutan Switzerland Society (BSS)

    26.10.22 in Thimphu

    2022 BSS 20 Years

    The 11th Annual General Meeting and the Commemoration Event of 20 Years of Bhutan Switzerland Society (BSS) in Thimphu on October 26th, 2022, was a great success. SSB would like to thank and congratulate the Board of BSS under the outgoing President Lyonpo Dr. Kinzang Dorji for arranging such a wonderful event.

    On this occasion the Board of the Society Switzerland – Bhutan would like to extend our great respect and gratitude to Lyonpo Dr. Kinzang Dorji for being such a supporting and reliable partner for the SSB over more than 10 years.

    The Society Switzerland-Bhutan congratulates Dasho Kinga Singye to become the new President of BSS. We are convinced that the good collaboration between BSS and SSB will continue to grow over the next years under his leadership. During the time when Dasho Kinga Singye served as Ambassador in Geneva, he was always of great support to SSB and all the Bhutanese in Switzerland.

    Congratulations as well to the reelected and elected new Board members of BSS: Dragyel Tenzin Dorjee, Nado Dukpa, Lekey Wangdi, Project Advisor in the HELVETAS Country Office Bhutan (new) and Karma Tenzin, Department of Culture (new).


    Bhutan in 1969: TV documentary directed by Peter Schellenberg

    Friday, October 9, 2022, Songtsen House Zurich

    Schellenberg 

    SSB Bhutan evening - and many came to watch the documentary film of the late Swiss television director Peter Schellenberg from 1969. Claudio Zingg , the President of the Society Switzerland-Bhutan, had found the rarity at a private film distributor to whom Swiss Television had sold the film rights. The images of the often bare mountain slopes, which have been reforested in recent decades thanks in part to Switzerland's support, are impressive and have made Bhutan one of the three CO2-negative countries in the world. But the development of traffic routes and settlements are also striking. The film team was guided through the country by the sound engineer Arthur Christen, alias Tenzin Dorji (Swiss Bakery). He was one of the first Swiss development experts in Bhutan.
    With this documentary, Schellenberg allowed us to look back into the past and some things that have survived until today.


    Dr. Karma Phuntsho in Switzerland

    23. - 26. October, 2022, Zurich, Berne, Geneva

    Karma 1 

    The Society Switzerland-Bhutan was honored to host Dr. Karma Phunthso in Switzerland during 3 days . It’s always an eyeopener when Karma Phuntsho is sharing his views on the development of the history and culture of Bhutan.
    During his stay in Switzerland we could organize 3 talks:
    - At the Zurich University of Teacher Education: “Culture, Society and Change: Bhutan’s Journey in the 21st Century – Challenges and Opportunities”
    - At the House of Religions in Berne: „Loden Foundation: Fostering Buddhist Entrepreneurship in Bhutan“
    - The highlight was the event on Sunday at the Residence of the Bhutan Embassy in Chambésy (Geneva). H.E. Ambassador Tenzin Rondel Wangchuk and his team were inviting SSB members and the Bhutanese community in Switzerland for a BBQ on the occasion of the opening of tourism in Bhutan followed by a talk of Karma Phuntsho „Padmasambhava and Bhutan“.

    Karma 2 


    Meeting of the European Bhutan Friendship Associations in Hungary

    14. - 18. September, 2022, Budapest and Lake Balaton

    EBFA 2 

    The European Bhutan Friendship Associations had their biannual meeting in Hungary.
    The main event was taking place in Budapest. After the exchange between the European Bhutan Friendship Associations, H.E. Ambassador of Bhutan in Brussels Tshering Gyaltshen Penjor was answering questions about the transformations going on in Bhutan.
    Afterwards the following speakers were giving insights in their approaches to value based business, education and sports:
    Value-based Business:
    - Value-based Banking - Csaba Molnár, Head of Community Development, MagNet Community Bank, Hungary
    - The Boddhisatva Entrepreneur - Gérard Tardy, Founder and Director of the Loden Entrepreneurship Program, Bhutan-France
    - Buddhist Economics - Gábor Kovács, Assistant Professor at the Business Ethics Centre of the Corvinus University of Budapest, Hungary
    Value-based Education
    - A Buddhist College in Europe - Gábor Karsai, Rector of Dharma Gate Buddhist College in Budapest and MD of Mind&Life Europe
    - Educating for the Future: Values and Challenges - Karma Phuntsho, Founder of the Loden Foundation, Bhutan
    - The REAL School experience - Viktória Szemerédy, Co-Founder of REAL School Budapest
    Value-based Sport: Traditional Archery
    - Hungarian Traditional Archery and its Connection to Bhutan - Roland Csáki, Hungarian traditional archer
    - More than a National Sport - Tshering Choden, Archery Coach & former Olympic archer of Bhutan

    EBFA 3

     

     

     

    Upcoming Events

     

    Friday, 1.12.2023, 19:30

    Neuelektrifizierung von Klöstern und Klosterburgen in Bhutan – Lichtblicke und Herausforderungen

    Emanuel Flückiger im Gespräch mit Claudio Zingg (Präsident Society Switzerland-Bhutan SSB)

    Songtsen House Zürich

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