Inspire, Nurture, Empower – Becoming a Positive Agent of Change
Announcing the Second International Buddhist Nuns Conference
21-23 June 2021
Thimphu, Bhutan
Two decades into the twenty-first century, our world faces tremendous challenges, with climate change, local and global conflicts, food insecurity, poverty, and growing mental health concerns. Addressing these issues requires us, as socially active Buddhists, to connect and collaborate, with mindfulness, compassion, and care for future generations. Buddhist nuns, in particular, offer great promise as role models and agents of social change in their local and in the global communities.
The Second International Buddhist Nuns Conference will explore the roles, opportunities, and responsibilities of Buddhist nuns in skillfully attending to the needs of our world. The conference will provide a platform for Buddhist nuns and others from around the globe to connect, discuss our collective roles and responsibilities, and exchange ideas and best practices.
This year’s conference will focus on the potential of all humans – especially Buddhist nuns – to transform themselves and serve their communities and the larger society. Accordingly, the conference will seek to inspire participants in their spiritual and civic lives; to help them nurture themselves through education, skill development, and community-building; and to empower them to return to their own communities as positive agents of change.
Inspire (Day 1)
- Rediscovering the meaning and value of spiritual life
- Evoking stories of personal and communal achievement
Nurture (Day 2)
- Opportunities and challenges faced by Buddhist nuns
- Spiritual, physical, and mental nourishment
- Fostering self-reliance
- Building and maintaining supportive, harmonious communities
- Serving the broader community
Empower (Day 3)
- Reaching one’s potential
- Buddhist nuns as role models in the larger world
- Buddhist nunneries as centers of culture and tradition
- Revival of Bhikkhuni Ordination
We are excited to invite proposals from Buddhist nuns and others from around the globe for talks and sessions on the above themes. Details about these proposals will be available in Spring/Summer 2020. Proposals will be due by the end of 2020, and decisions will be made at the beginning of 2021.
General conference registration will open in summer/fall 2020 and remain open until spring 2021.
Please note that the Bhutan Nuns Foundation is in the process of fundraising for this conference to help defray the costs for nuns both within and outside Bhutan. Please consider sponsoring a Bhutanese nun or a group of nuns to attend the conference so that they might be further inspired, nurtured, and empowered to become positive agents of change through their participation in this important event.
To request more information about this conference, please send a message using the contact form below.