Annual Spiritual Ecology Lecture Series on topic: Spiritual Ecology in the Himalayas: His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Tibetan Conservation Traditions and the Environmental Crisis on the Plateau
Tibet House, New Delhi, is pleased to announce the Annual Spiritual Ecology Lecture Series, featuring a lecture on “Spiritual Ecology in the Himalayas: His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Tibetan Conservation Traditions and the Environmental Crisis on the Plateau.”
The lecture will explore the growing environmental crisis on the Tibetan Plateau, examining the impact of climate change, retreating glaciers, grassland degradation, mining and dam construction on the region’s fragile ecosystems and the water security of millions of people across Asia.
Drawing on the traditions of Tibetan Buddhism, the lecture will examine historical conservation practices, including Mountain Valley Edicts, the “sealing of hills and valleys,” and the reverence for sacred natural sites such as Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarovar. It will also highlight how this environmental heritage continues through the advocacy of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, grounded in the principles of interdependence and universal responsibility, alongside contemporary Tibetan environmental initiatives such as the 17th Karmapa’s Khoryug network and Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang Rinpoche’s Go Green-Go Organic initiative in Ladakh.
The lecture will conclude by exploring how spiritual ecology can provide a shared ethical foundation that complements climate science and environmental policymaking in the interconnected Himalayan region.
Join us for an insightful discussion on Tibetan conservation traditions, spiritual responsibility and the environmental challenges facing the Tibetan Plateau and the wider Himalayan region.
Date: Tuesday, 17th November 2026
Time: 06:00 PM – 08:00 PM (IST)
Venue: Lecture Room No. 1, Annexe Building, India International Centre (IIC), New Delhi
Speaker’s Introduction:
Dr. Lobsang Yangtso is a Senior Environmental Researcher and Interim Co-Director at the International Tibet Network, Dharamshala, India. She holds a Ph.D. from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Her research focuses on climate change on the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalayan region, particularly the water security of the Brahmaputra, Drichu (Yangtze) and Mekong rivers. She advocates for the meaningful inclusion of Tibetans and other indigenous peoples in climate policymaking and has presented her research at COP meetings, the UN Water Conference in New York and the 56th Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. She has also conducted fieldwork across Tibet, Thailand, Mustang (Nepal) and Arunachal Pradesh (India), and hosts the online series Tibet Climate Crisis. Previously, she served as a Research Associate at the Centre for China Analysis and Strategy in New Delhi.
Last date of registration: Monday, 16th November 2026 by 01:00 PM (IST).