SDGs and Dharma Traditions Lecture Series
Right to Development vs Right to Environment: Resolving Conflicting Rights through Dharma
Public Lecture by Most Ven. Da Lama Byambajav Khunkhur, Secretary General, Asian Buddhists Conference for Peace
In December 1968, the United Nations General Assembly adopted Resolution 41/128 which proclaimed a “Declaration on the Right to Development”. More recently, in July 2022, the same body adopted Resolution 76/300 on the “human right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment”. Experience from countries across the world at different stages of ‘development’ has consistently shown that these rights, important as they are, are often in conflict with each other. Could Dharma offer a way out of this seemingly intractable tension? The speaker will share his insights on a question which has immense implications for the world.
Most Ven. Da Lama Byambajav Khunkhur was elected as the Secretary General of the Asian Buddhists Conference for Peace (ABCP) in its 12th General Assembly held in 2019. He is an accomplished scholar and author, and is the Da Lama of the Gandan Tegchenling Monastery, the Centre of Mongolian Buddhists. ABCP was established in 1969 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia as a voluntary movement of Buddhists with both monastic (monks) and lay members. It has national center members in several countries including Bhutan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, India, Japan, Laos, Mongolia, Nepal, Republic of Korea, Russia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam.
Livestream / recording available here.