Empowering Tibetan Cultural Preservation: Consortium Conference on Tibetan Digital Library

Sikyong Penpa Tsering and USAID Mission Director Veena Reddy lighting the butter lamp. Photo/ Tenzin Jigme/CTA

Dharamshala: The Department of Religion and Culture, CTA, is hosting a 2-day Consortium Conference of the Tibetan Digital Library as part of the ‘Strengthening Cultural Resilience of Tibetan Communities’ program from March 12-13, 2024.

The inaugural ceremony was graced by Sikyong Penpa Tsering, Veena Reddy, Mission Director of USAID India Mission, Additional Secretary Kunga Gyaltsen of the Department of Religion and Culture, and Mark Tegenfeldt, Office Director of the General Development Office, USAID.

The ceremony commenced with Sikyong and Mission Director Veena Reddy lighting a butter lamp and offering of scarves to the portrait of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Additional Secretary Kunga Gyaltsen delivered the welcome address.

A message from His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in both Tibetan and English was also read out during the ceremony.

In his address, Sikyong expressed gratitude to the older generation of Tibetans for preserving Tibetan Buddhism by bringing religious scriptures while fleeing Tibet. He acknowledged the various stakeholders involved in the program, from USAID, Tibet Fund, SARD, Wadhwani AI, to Monlam ITRC, and highlighted the significant contribution of the Late E. Gene Smith, founder of the Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center (TBRC). Sikyong emphasised the need for collective effort for the programme’s success and urged participants to utilise the conference as a platform for networking with scholars and experts.

Veena Reddy, Mission Director of USAID, commended the Tibetan movement for its dedication to preserving and promoting Tibetan culture, recognising the importance of these efforts in safeguarding the culture against threats to its existence.

Dhondup Tsering, Head of the Culture Section, conveyed the vote of thanks.

A total of 64 participants from monasteries and cultural institutions attended the conference.

This digital library project is a collaborative initiative with Wadhwani AI and Monlam ITRC.

The program was officially launched by Sikyong in November 2023 and is directly funded by USAID.