Phunchok Stobdan
Ambassador, Ladakh International Centre
Ambassador (Professor) Stobdan is a distinguished academician, diplomat, author and foreign policy/national security analyst. As a student of Asian affairs he closely follows developments in China, Central Asia and High Asia. He has twice served in Central Asia, most recently as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of India to Kyrgyzstan. He is the Founding President of the Ladakh International Centre (India). .
Event summary:
Our event begins with a screening of 'JUNGWA: The Broken Balance', a documentary about living with environmental change in the western Himalayas. Living with natural hazards is part of life in Ladakh : how much of the change is due to global warming is an active debate, among the communities in the mountains and for global science. In the film, Ladakhi writer-director Stanzin Dorjai Gya shares with us the varying concerns and perspectives of the people of Ladakh about the changes they are witnessing in their local environment.
The second part of our event will be a 20 minute panel discussion chaired by Professor Nick Clifford, Head of Department of Geography at King's College London, with:-
•Joel Gill (Director of Geology of Global development, PhD student at Geography Department, King's College London and Intrepid Explorers presenter)
•Virginie Le Masson (Research Officer Gender and Climate Change at the Overseas Development Institute whose thesis was based on disaster risk reduction in Ladakh)
•Malgorzata Skowronska (masters student at King's, member of Secret Peaks Expedition Series+ Intrepid Explorers presenter)
•Sally Daultrey (Director of Research Services, Ladakh International Centre)
•Ambassador Phunchok Stobdan (Founding President, Ladakh International Centre) - Joining the panel via Skype.