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, the Mind & Life Institute's Call to Care Initiative as well as with local organisations such as the Gross National Happiness Centre and the Bhutan Centre for Media & Democracy, among others.

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.

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 250 schools in all corners of Bhutan, empowering thousands of children to change their communities for the better. 

Tim Huang is the Country Co-Lead of Design for Change (DFC) Bhutan. He has been a long-time advisor and trainer for DFC Bhutan, starting from 2015. Tim has lived in Bhutan for several years, growing community-based programs in education, youth leadership, child protection, human development, mental health and emotional wellbeing. He has worked with ELC, UNICEF, UNDP, the Bhutan Youth Development Fund, the Royal University of Bhutan, and the Royal Government of Bhutan. He is also a Dalai Lama Fellow. 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.