Bhutan
Bhutan is a small landlocked country in the eastern Himalayas that is attempting to pursue an alternative to the common approaches to the relationships among science, technology, and ethics. Bordered on the north by Tibet and on the south by India, this Buddhist kingdom is approximately one-third the size of nearby Nepal, with a population estimated at around 1 million persons. In 1959, after the Chinese invasion of Tibet, Bhutan departed from a period of isolation that had lasted for centuries to accept assistance from India in building its first major road, thus initiating close diplomatic and economic ties with its southern neighbor. Despite its international ties, since 1960 Bhutan has pursued a cautious and circumspect approach to technology and development.
The vision guiding Bhutan's approach has emerged from the core values of Vajrayana Buddhism, specifically the Drukpa Kagyu and Nyingma lineages that dominate the country's spiritual landscape. The effect of those values on modern technological development is suggestedin the frequently quoted maxim of Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the king of Bhutan: "Gross national happiness is more important than gross national product."
Ideas such as ley jumdrey, the law of karma; tha damtshig, the sacred commitment to interpersonal relationships; and the interdependence of all things are illustrated in the ubiquitous iconography of thuenpa puenshi, "the Four Friends," four animals that achieve a common good through thoughtful cooperation, an image that is painted on the walls of classrooms, government offices, hotels, shops, and homes throughout the country. Hagiographies of successful Buddhist practitioners convey the importance of self-discipline, the efficacy of ritual and contemplative practices, and the perfectibility of human beings, along with universal values such as honesty, compassion, harmony, and nonviolence. Divine madmen such as the antinomian folk hero Drukpa Kunley offer a corrective to pretentious, self-important authority and the soporific effects of habituation to mundane, consensus reality.
Guided by those core Buddhist values, Bhutan has approached the ideal of sustainable development, linking technological innovation, environmental conservation, cultural continuity, and good governance through development programs aimed at increasing human welfare rather than focusing only on industrialization and economic diversification. Conservation of the last remaining unspoiled forests in the Himalayan region is a national priority that is grounded in a preexisting indigenous conservation ethic. Protected conservation areas account for about 26 percent of the country's land area. Education in environmental science begins at the kindergarten level, and public banners reinforce that ethic with admonitions such as "Healthy Forest for a Healthy Environment, Let Us Maintain It." The Bhutan Trust Fund of Environmental Conservation, established in 1991, is widely acknowledged as the first national environmental trust in the world and has been a model for similar trusts in other countries.
Foreign exchange primarily involves tourism and hydroelectricity sold to neighboring India. Learning from the experiences of regional neighbors such as Nepal, Bhutan gradually opened its borders to foreign tourists but in 1974 adopted a policy of "high-value, low-volume" tourism to avoid the negative consequences of unrestrained tourism on the natural environment and the indigenous culture. A similar caution has been displayed in the development of hydroelectricity. According to 1996 estimates, only 2 percent of the hydroelectric potential of the nation has been tapped. In addition to the major dam at Chukha, many mini- and micro-hydroelectric projects are scattered throughout the country in order to avoid the watershed damage associated with larger projects while providing electricity directly to remote locales.
Perhaps the most dramatic and far-reaching technological change occurred in 1999 with the lifting of a government ban on broadcast television and the introduction of Internet access. The extent to which traditional Bhutanese values will be displaced by an ideology of consumerism and the values of an advertising culture remains to be seen.
Buddhist Perspectives;; Social Indicators.
Bibliography
National Environmental Commission, Royal Government of Bhutan. (1998). The Middle Path: National Environment Strategy for Bhutan. Bangkok, Thailand: Keene Publishing. This book was produced by the National Environment Commission and a policy statement of the Royal Government of Bhutan on conservation and sustainable development.
Priesner, Stefan. (1999). "Gross National Happiness—Bhutan's Vision of Development and Its Challenges." In Gross National Happiness: Discussion Papers. Thimphu, Bhutan: Centre for Bhutan Studies. This is the first book published by the Centre for Bhutan Studies and contains nine papers exploring various aspects of development vis-á-vis the "gross national happiness" concept.
Wangyal, Tashi. (2001). "Ensuring Social Sustainability: Can Bhutan's Education System Ensure Intergenerational Transmission of Values?" Journal of Bhutan Studies 3(1): 108–133. This article explores the role of public education in Bhutan in the transmission of Buddhist values and perspectives in face of increasing globalization of culture.
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