Lunana Gewog

The Cost of Free

Bhutan gives healthcare, school and near-free power with one hand and runs some of South Asia's most expensive counters with the other. An editorial from the BhutanWiki Editorial Team on the captive markets — eggs, sand, meat, doma, data, cars — where the government's own competition watchdog has named the problem all year, and the prices have outlived the reports.

Blue Sheep in Bhutan

The bharal or Himalayan blue sheep (Pseudois nayaur) is a wild caprine of Bhutan's northern alpine zone and the principal prey species of the snow leopard. Although classed by the IUCN as Least Concern globally, in Bhutan it is closely monitored for its role in supporting snow leopard conservation. Surveys in Jigme Dorji and Wangchuck Centennial National Parks have placed local densities among the highest recorded in the eastern Himalaya.

River Systems of Bhutan

Bhutan's river systems rise from Himalayan glaciers and drain through steep forested gorges into the Brahmaputra plain, sustaining the kingdom's agriculture, generating its primary export commodity in hydroelectric power, and posing significant flood risks from glacial lake outbursts and monsoon flooding.

Jomolhari Trek

The Jomolhari Trek is one of Bhutan's most popular and iconic trekking routes, a challenging 8-9 day journey from Paro to Thimphu via the base camp of Mount Jomolhari (7,326 metres) through the pristine wilderness of Jigme Dorji National Park. Reaching a maximum elevation of approximately 4,930 metres at the Nyile La pass, the trek passes through alpine meadows, yak herder camps, blue sheep habitat, and some of the most spectacular mountain scenery in the Himalayas.

Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) in Bhutan

Bhutan faces one of the highest risks of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) in the world. With 2,674 glacial lakes — 25 of which have been identified as potentially dangerous — the threat is accelerating as climate change drives rapid glacial retreat. The catastrophic 1994 Lugge Tsho GLOF killed 21 people and devastated the Punakha Valley, and the growing Thorthormi Tsho lake remains a major concern. This article examines the science, history, and mitigation efforts behind one of Bhutan's most serious environmental challenges.

Punakha Dzong

Punakha Dzong, formally Pungtang Dechen Photrang Dzong ("Palace of Great Bliss"), is the second oldest and second largest dzong in Bhutan. Built in 1637–38 by Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal at the confluence of the Mo Chhu and Pho Chhu in the Punakha valley, it served as the seat of Bhutanese government until 1955 and remains the coronation site of every Druk Gyalpo.

Climate and Weather of Bhutan

Bhutan's climate varies dramatically from subtropical in the southern foothills to alpine in the northern highlands, shaped by the country's extreme altitudinal range from approximately 100 metres to over 7,500 metres. The Indian monsoon dominates the rainfall pattern, delivering the bulk of annual precipitation between June and September. Understanding Bhutan's climate zones is essential for visitors, researchers, and policymakers concerned with agriculture, biodiversity, and the growing impacts of climate change.

Sherab Dorji (actor)

Sherab Dorji is a Bhutanese actor, musician, and filmmaker best known for his lead role as Ugyen Dorji in Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom (2019), Bhutan's first Oscar-nominated film. He won the Best Actor award at the Festival International du Film de Saint-Jean-de-Luz for his performance.

Snowman Trek

The Snowman Trek is a high-altitude long-distance trek in northern Bhutan, widely regarded as one of the most difficult treks in the world. Spanning approximately 356 kilometres over 25 days, the route traverses remote valleys from Laya to Lunana, crossing numerous passes above 5,000 metres, with a completion rate estimated at less than 50 per cent.

Hema Hema: Sing Me a Song While I Wait

Hema Hema: Sing Me a Song While I Wait is a 2016 Dzongkha-language drama directed by Khyentse Norbu, set in a forest where masked individuals gather every twelve years for a hidden ritual. The film premiered at the 69th Locarno Film Festival and was barred from public screening in Bhutan in early 2017 by the Bhutan InfoComm and Media Authority over its use of religious masks.

Bhutan's Film Industry

Bhutan's film industry emerged in 1989 with the first feature film and has grown into a modest but culturally significant sector producing 15 to 20 films annually. The industry faces challenges of limited infrastructure and competition from foreign media but has gained international recognition through directors like Khyentse Norbu and Pawo Choyning Dorji.

Disaster Management Act of Bhutan, 2013

The 2013 statute creating Bhutan's formal disaster-management framework, the National Disaster Management Authority, and dzongkhag-level disaster risk reduction obligations after the 2009 Mongar and 2011 Sikkim earthquakes.

Glacial Lake Outburst Flood Risk in Bhutan

Bhutan's high Himalayan glaciers feed numerous moraine-dammed lakes that are at risk of outburst floods (GLOFs). The 1994 Lugge Tsho GLOF killed 21 people and damaged Punakha Dzong, and subsequent decades have produced one of the most active GLOF-mitigation and early-warning programmes in the Himalaya.

Bhutan and Climate Change

Bhutan occupies a unique position in global climate politics as the world's only carbon-negative country, absorbing more than four times the carbon dioxide it emits thanks to its extensive forest cover. Despite contributing negligibly to global emissions, Bhutan is acutely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, particularly glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), glacial retreat, and disruptions to agriculture and water resources. The country's Constitution mandates that at least 60 per cent of its land remain under forest cover in perpetuity.

Bhutan and the Third Pole Initiative

The "Third Pole" refers to the Hindu Kush–Himalayan cryosphere, the largest store of frozen freshwater outside the Arctic and Antarctic. Bhutan is a small but recurring participant in Third Pole climate science and diplomacy, contributing through its glacier inventory, GLOF mitigation work and its long-running carbon-negative posture in international forums.

Lunana

Lunana is one of the most remote inhabited regions on Earth, a gewog in the Gasa District of northern Bhutan situated at elevations above 4,000 metres. Surrounded by glaciers and glacial lakes, Lunana is known for its extreme isolation, its vulnerability to glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), and the resilient yak-herding community that calls it home.

Mo Chhu

The Mo Chhu, or "Mother River," is one of the major rivers of western Bhutan, flowing through the Punakha Valley before joining the Pho Chhu at the iconic Punakha Dzong. Renowned for its scenic beauty and rapids, the Mo Chhu is a premier destination for whitewater rafting and a vital source of hydroelectric power for the kingdom.

Pawo Choyning Dorji

Pawo Choyning Dorji (born 23 June 1983) is a Bhutanese filmmaker, photographer and writer. His directorial debut Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom (2019) was the first Bhutanese film nominated for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film, at the 94th Academy Awards in 2022. His second feature, The Monk and the Gun (2023), was shortlisted but not nominated at the 96th Academy Awards.

Yak Herding in Bhutan

Yak herding is a traditional pastoral livelihood practised by highland communities in northern Bhutan, particularly the Layap of Laya and the Lunap of Lunana. Yaks provide essential products including butter, cheese, wool, and meat, and serve as pack animals in the high-altitude terrain. The semi-nomadic herding lifestyle faces increasing pressure from modernisation, climate change, and rural-to-urban migration, prompting efforts to sustain these communities and their cultural heritage.

Raven as Bhutan's National Bird

The common raven (Corvus corax tibetanus) is the national bird of Bhutan and the religious emblem of the Bhutanese monarchy. Its iconography is rooted in the protector deity Gonpo Jarog Dongchen, the raven-headed form of Mahakala, and it crowns the Druk Gyalpo's ceremonial Raven Crown.