ABOUT US

Deki Choden is the Founding Country Lead of Design for Change (DFC) Bhutan and the Founding Principal of the Educating for Lifelong Citizenship (ELC) School, which has partnered with the Contentment Foundation, Harvard University’s Making Caring Common Project, Design for Change Global, World Happiness Foundation, Eurasia Learning Institute, UNESCO Happy Schools Framework, the Mind & Life Institute's Call to Care Initiative as well as with local organisations such as the Gross National Happiness Centre, Royal University of Bhutan, and the Bhutan Centre for Media & Democracy, among others.

She founded Design for Change Bhutan in 2010 and aspires to inspire an 'I CAN' mindset in every student across Bhutan. Under her leadership as Country Lead, DFC Bhutan has spread to over 300 schools in all 20 districts of Bhutan, empowering thousands of children to change their communities for the better. Deki received a BA from Barnard College, Columbia University in New York and an MA in Education from Reading University in the United Kingdom.

Having served as an educator for 37 years, including as one of the first Bhutanese women lecturers at Sherubtse College, she is a proponent of “EduCARING for Universal Happiness and Wellbeing” - the belief that educating the heart is as important as educating the mind to realize the vision of Gross National Happiness in education. 

Tim Huang is the Country Co-Lead of Design for Change (DFC) Bhutan. He has been a long-time advisor and facilitator for DFC Bhutan since 2015. Tim has lived and worked in Bhutan for several years, growing community-based programs in education, youth leadership, child rights, human development, restorative justice, mental health and emotional wellbeing. He has served as researcher, trainer and systems change strategist for the UNDP, UNICEF, Bhutan Youth Development Fund, OneSky for all children, Contentment Foundation, Eurasia Learning Institute, Educating for Lifelong Citizenship School, Royal University of Bhutan, and Royal Government of Bhutan. He is also a Dalai Lama Fellow and inner leadership coach. Tim holds a bachelor's degree in human biology and a master's degree in education from Stanford University, along with a master's degree in public policy from Harvard University.