Bhutan’s GNH 50 years on: Lessons from the Global GNH Forum

After the Queen and Queen Mother arrived and four dancers in elaborate costumes started a deliberate, captivating dance, I knew that we were somewhere special and in for something special. This was the opening ceremony of the inaugural Global GNH Forum and the dancers were part of the Chipdrel and Marchang Ceremony that includes a ritual purification dance performed at the beginning of important events. The dancers represent the protective energies and together their movements subdue obstructive forces, stabilise the space and create an auspicious container for what follows. The ritual says: "what happens next matters". How accurate this turned out to be.

People from all over the world came to this gathering. From Australia, Spain, France, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Venezuela, Poland and Taiwan. What united us all was a shared belief that our current measures of success and progress no longer served us. Which is why we came together as the Global GNH Forum to celebrate 50 years since the Fourth King of Bhutan created the concept. Gross National Happiness offers a way to measure success and progress that equally balances economic prosperity, care for the environment, strong governance of social institutions and preservation of culture.

The power of GNH lies in its adaptability as it can be applied at the societal, organisational or individual level. Take for example one of the sub domains of "community vitality". We can think of how to build a vibrant community across our whole country as well as in our businesses where we strive to have a positive culture. Community vitality of course also applies to the local communities in which we live.

GNH is not a prescription for how to live our lives. Rather it is a framework to shift and challenge our perspective on what success is. "A new global narrative where happiness is not a by-product but the purpose" said her Royal Highness Ashi Kesang Chodren Wangchuck in her opening remarks. She presented an aspirational vision for collective living that redefines progress and connects humanity to what truly matters. She invited us to reimagine our leadership and our communities through the lens of wisdom. "One mindful step at a time can truly make a difference" she reminded us.

This inspiration was then translated into action with the conference opening keynote address from the Former Prime Minister of Bhutan, Lynpo Khandu Wangchuk, who worked closely with the Fourth King to bring GNH to life as part of the administrative functioning of the country. He shared many examples, of which a few stood out:

• A policy setting for high value, low volume tourism to protect the country from being overrun by tourists yet still benefiting from its economic value.
• A genuine focus on wellbeing of all the people of Bhutan by offering free universal healthcare, including sending citizens to other countries for advanced specialist care should they need.
• Only one of 3 carbon negative countries in the world where it is enshrined in its constitution that Bhutan will maintain a minimum of 60% forest cover for eternity. Currently it stands at 70%.

These examples were brought to life by other speakers throughout the conference including one detailed explanation of the GNH screening tool used by the government to assess policies. This was a robust process involving an expert panel and a detailed evaluation that ranks each policy against 33 indicators representing the core pillars of GNH.

Stories of Inspiration

More than anything, GNH shows what can be possible. From redesigning how school education is structured and delivered to working with local communities on capacity building, the GNH model stimulates expansive thinking that prioritises the most important things for people to live meaningful lives.

A true mark of the power of the GNH concept is that after 50 years, GNH is now inspiring the next generation of change-makers. Take Sangay for example, a bachelor student from the Royal Thimphu College, whose articulate presentation on the future of youth that blew us all away. She spoke about the delicate threshold that youth faced and argued that the more we digitise, the more we need to humanise. "Happiness is not in pixels but in people" she said as she painted a plausible future where technology strengthens the concepts of GNH through its wise use emphasising connectedness and wellbeing. The future is bright with a generation exhibiting such wisdom.

Through conversations with people like Sangay, the conference allowed different perspectives to emerge which expanded and challenged our thinking.

Dialogue as the foundation of change

Conversations were at the heart of the forum reflecting the Bhutanese relational view of the world. Formal panel conversations on stage were followed by informal conversations around a fire every night where we shared food and our reflections on the day. Through these moments we learnt about the inspiring work of Economia Humana in Spain, who advocates for a more conscious society and organisations with their philosophy that incorporates the essence of GNH. Ian Triay, the Honorary Consul for Bhutan in Spain generously shared his wisdom from over 30 years involvement with Bhutan and endlessly entertained us with his stories.

The breadth and depth of conversations kept us thinking about possibilities and what else we can do to make a difference in our contexts. Global change makers like Danny Almagor, Founder of Small Giants Academy and who leads the GNH Centre Australia, gave a profound presentation on re-imagining the role of capital in solving societies' problems.

All of these stories were set against the backdrop of the momentous confluence of the global peace prayers and the King's 75th Birthday.

The grand narratives

For two weeks in November 2025 Bhutan hosted the Global Peace Prayer Festival bringing together over 150 eminent Buddhist masters, lamas and scholars plus thousands of devotees from around the world to gather for prayer and a global call for peace and compassion. Every morning at 6am the dulcet tones of collective chanting wafted through Thimphu and into my window. At a time of multiple wars and increasing hostilities, the peace prayers offered a counterpoint in how we could live as humanity.

The Bhutanese culture is a happy one full of solemnity when required and outright party when a celebration is in order. And the 75th Birthday of His Majesty, the fourth King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, was a party indeed. Over 45,000 people packed the largest stadium in Bhutan and we were fortunate to get tickets and watch the celebrations unfold. An entire football field filled with whirling ritual dancers followed by hundreds of school children singing and dancing. Even the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, came to wish the King a happy birthday.

But the real highlight for me was the dance of the elders. These were retired civil servants and ministers - including former prime ministers - who had worked while the 4th King was in power. Secretly they choregraphed and learnt a dance for over two months and came onto the field to surprise him with a performance tribute to his leadership. There are not many bosses for whom their previous employees would learn a dance.

The auspicious container

So perhaps the opening ceremony worked. The space created allowed for ideas to flow, conversations to merge, and inspiration to ignite. The concept of Gross National Happiness is timeless. It is a message we need to hear more now than ever. The world and those within it are suffering yet our individual actions will add up to make a real difference. The small actions that each of us take, does make a difference.

It is time to redefine what success is. Let's take a more expansive view and look at the wellbeing of all living things. The United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals has the motto "leave no one behind". This is a powerful place to start, and Bhutan's Gross National Happiness invites us to take this further and enhance the wellbeing of all.