Thought Leader: Siok Sian Pek-Dorji

Siok Sian Pek-Dorji believes that life's decisions are actually karmic responsibilities. She believes that she was predestined to a life in the Himalayas, where she has had the good fortune to be a part of historic social and political change.

The focus of Siok Sian's work and interests has changed with the transition of Bhutan from a medieval kingdom into a modern nation-state. In March 2008, Bhutan became the world's youngest democracy. In June 2008 she started Bhutan's first nonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening the foundation for democracy, the Bhutan Center for Media and Democracy (BCMD).

This is the first non-profit in Bhutan to conduct research and educational activities to build a culture for democracy. The Centre has initiated a number of activities - from training on creative non-fiction writing and online journalism to seminars for Bhutan's parliament and media, and a conference on emerging democracies. The Centre launched a media literacy programme to provide youth with the critical thinking skills needed to become active citizens in a democratic society. BCMD hosts regular forums that have focused on public space, role of journalism, and the need for public service media. In 2010, it launched an annual Bhutan Media Dialogue to provide a space for media professionals and professionals from various fields to discuss the role of media in Bhutan's changing society.

BCMD is constantly negotiating space for civil society in this newly founded democracy.

After working as a journalist and presenter on an investigative television program in Singapore, Siok Sian moved to Bhutan in 1987. Over the past 20 years, she has published magazines and books, produced radio and TV documentaries, trained reporters and consulted on the development of media and information services.

She was part of the team at the Bhutan Broadcasting Service (Bhutan's public service broadcaster) to plan the launch of television and train the first team of television news presenters when Bhutan introduced television on June 2 of 1999.

Siok Sian has consulted for the government of Bhutan, DANIDA, UNESCO, UNDP, and a number of international organizations on media, communications, and other social issues. She has written numerous articles and research papers on media, women, and children.

Siok Sian led the research on the 2003 Media Impact Survey, which provided the first baseline study on media in Bhutan, laying the foundation for Bhutan's media policy and legislation. She completed an update of the study for the Government of Bhutan in 2008. She has been involved in drafting broadcasting, advertising, and film guidelines, and continues to train newspaper and broadcasts reporters.

Siok Sian's primary interest today is promoting media literacy in Bhutan, where society, emerging from an oral tradition, is confronting the powerful forces of the recently introduced audio-visual media.

Siok Sian is a mother of three and a struggling meditation practitioner. She is married to a fellow journalist who started Bhutan's first newspaper. She enjoyed the benefits of an associate fellowship at Stanford University, where her husband was a Knight Fellow in 2006-2007. She has a BA in Communications from Charles Sturt University, New South Wales, Australia, and an MA in international communications from Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia.

Siok Sian's work today is inspired by the pace of change in the small kingdom, and by the country's vision of Gross National Happiness (GNH) which seeks personal contentment and well-being above the material focus of a GNP approach.

Siok Sian Pek-Dorji has written the essay, The Value of Happiness as part of the IVOH Voices & Values of Journalism Project - listen to and read the entire collection of essays here.

Pek's recent work and related links: