KEYNOTE SPEAKER
PEMA TSEDEN
TIBETAN WRITER & FILMMAKER
Pema Tseden was born in 1969 in Trika, Tsolho, in the Amdo region of Tibet. Son of drokpas (pastorialists), he was the first in his family to receive advanced education. He studied at the distinguished Tibetan Language and Literature program of the Northwest Nationalities University in Lanzhou where he developed his talent for writing and translation. He worked as a primary school teacher and as a civil servant while continuing to write, publishing widely and to critical acclaim in both Tibetan and Chinese. In 2002, he became the first Tibetan to attend the Beijing Film Academy, the most prestigious film school in the People’s Republic of China.
2019 SPEAKERS
|
ANGELO BACA Cultural activist, Scholar, and Filmmaker Angelo Baca is a cultural activist, scholar, filmmaker and currently a doctoral student in anthropology at New York University and Cultural Resources Coordinator at Utah Diné Bikéyah, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the defense and protection of culturally significant ancestral lands. The National Parks Conservation Association named him “10 Under 40” dynamic cultural activists on the Next Generation Advisory Council. He has published a widely read op-ed in the New York Times. Shash Jaa’: Bears Ears is Angelo Baca’s latest award-winning film about the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition that worked together to protect 1.9 million acres of Utah wilderness through a national monument designation. |
|
GELEK BADHEYTSANG Communications Advisor for the Legal Regulator of Ontario Gelek Badheytsang is a Tibetan Canadian who lives in Toronto and works as a communications advisor for the legal regulator of Ontario. He was born and raised in Kathmandu, Nepal, and arrived in Canada as a refugee at the end of 2001. Gelek dabbles in writing and journalism, with an eye towards arts and culture, the environment, equity and social justice. He aspires to be a beekeeper one day. |
|
DEON BEN Native America Program Manager at Grand Canyon Trust Deon Ben is originally from the community of Tohatchi, New Mexico, and rejoined the Trust’s Native America Program in 2016. Prior to joining the Trust, Deon worked for the Grand Canyon National Park’s Vegetation Program. He earned his B.S. in environmental studies at Northern Arizona University and is currently completing his M.S. in environmental science and policy at NAU. Growing up on Navajo land, Deon experienced the perfect mesh of traditional knowledge and environmental education, which led him to his graduate work focusing on incorporating traditional ecological knowledge to address animal husbandry and grazing within tribal communities that are facing climate challenges. Deon enjoys the isolation and natural beauty of his traditional homeland and looks forward to positive environmental change. |
|
UGYAN CHOEDUP PhD Candidate in History at Pennsylvania State University Ugyan Choedup is from Bir, India. He completed his M.Phil in International Studies from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India. Currently he is a PhD candidate in History at Pennsylvania State University. His dissertation is tentatively titled "Genealogy of Modern Exile Tibetan Nationalist Discourse: Exploration into the Questions of Colonialism, Modernity, and Nationalism." He is also a co-founder of Khyeltam འཁྱྱལ་གཏམ།, a Tibetan language based podcast on soundcloud. |
|
DR. TENZIN CHOEPHEL Senior Aerospace Engineer at Pratt and Whitney Dr. Tenzin Choephel is a Senior Aerospace Engineer at Pratt and Whitney, a major jet engine manufacturer based in Connecticut. Tenzin is part of Missions and Vehicle Analysis Division where he conducts aircraft performance and flight mechanics studies for commercial airplanes and helicopters. Currently, as a flight vehicle performance lead, Tenzin supports the development of Pratt and Whitney’s game-changing geared turbofan (GTF) engines for the Japanese-built Mitsubishi regional jets and the Brazilian-built Embraer regional jets. Apart from his daytime job, Tenzin serves as a board member of Tibetan Scientific Society, a non-profitable organization in India that promotes STEM education among Tibetans in exile. The society has organized national-level conferences, science workshops, Buddhism and science dialogues, essay contests etc. Tenzin earned a PhD in Aerospace Engineering from the Pennsylvania State University. |
|
TENZIN CHUNGKYI Nurse at Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center Tenzin Chungkyi was born and raised in Bengaluru in southern India. Growing up, she was strongly motivated and dedicated to serving the Tibetan community. After finishing her Bachelor's degree in Commerce from Osmania University, she worked in different capacities in the field of finance, from beginning as a secretary to becoming deputy secretary of development and implementation of various socioeconomic projects. In 2009, she immigrated to Boston MA with her family and later continued her studies at the Bunker Hill Community College for her Associate Degree in Nursing. Soon after, she obtained her Bachelor's Degree from the Chamberlain College of Nursing. Currently, Chungkyi is working at a Skilled Nursing and Rehabilitation Center. She enjoys music, participating actively in community events and spending time with family. |
|
DOLMA DAWA Director and Co-Founder of Yakpo Collective Dolma Dawa is the Director and co-founder of Yakpo Collective, a platform for promoting Tibetan contemporary artists in exile. She graduated from New York Institute of Technology with Bachelors in Psychology in 2012. She is passionate about arts and culture curation, and aspires to be a documentary film maker. |
|
TENZIN DECHEN Biostatistician at the Center for Healthcare Delivery Science and Advanced Analytics at Beth Israel Deaconness Medical Center Tenzin Dechen is a Biostatistician at the Center for Healthcare Delivery Science and Advanced Analytics at Beth Israel Deaconness Medical Center in Boston. She serves as a resource for research study designs and statistical methods to generate data and insights to improve quality of patient care. Outside of work, she has been a core member of the Tibetan Resettlement Stories: Voices of Boston oral history project since 2015. She is deeply moved by the people's history conveyed through this project and cannot wait for everyone to hear these heartwarming life stories of early Tibetan immigrants in Boston. |
|
SHERAB DOLMA Domestic Violence and Child Sexual Abuse Survivor Sherab Dolma was born in India and is an accounting professional. She is a certified domestic violence and Multilingual Access Model (MLAM) language advocate with Asian Women’s Shelter. She also serves as a volunteer treasurer for ACHA Himalayan Sisterhood. Sherab Dolma is the co-translator of the Domestic Violence Manual. She practices self-care with minimalism, fitness and intentional living. |
|
TENZING DOLMA Student at High School for Health Professions and Human Services Tenzing Doma is a third year high school student at High School for Health Professions and Human Services. She is currently in the Medical Assisting program provided at her school, pursuing her interest in medicine and the Human anatomy. Tenzing Doma is also one of the proud founding students of YindaYin Coaching center. Currently, she is part of YindaYin College Preparation Class. Outside of school, Tenzing is one of the core team leaders of YindaYin Youth Leadership Program, where she tutors younger students in Math and assists in leading the KickBack Friday program with the help of her peers. Through teaching and volunteering at YindaYin Coaching along with partaking in her school’s Medical Assisting Program, Tenzing has developed a wide variety of skills that have furthered her interest in pursuing a career in the medical field. By encouraging the youth to both pursue their passions and give back to the community, Tenzing hopes to motivate the younger generations of Tibetans to become the next leaders of the world. |
|
TENZING DORJE MFA Student in Documentary Media at Ryerson University Tenzing Dorjé spent his early years between Boudhanath, Nepal, and Mussoorie, India, where he attended a boarding school until the age of 15. Currently living in Toronto, his photography centres around documenting the life and changes around Boudhanath Stupa and the streets and people of Toronto. His photographic projects also include documenting the honey hunters among the Gurung people in the Himalayas and the Kalachakra teachings in Bodhgaya, India. Dorjé is currently working on his MFA in Documentary Media (Photography) at Ryerson University. |
|
JAMPA GHAPONTSANG Co-founder of Tibetan Resettlement Stories: Voices of Boston Traveling to Tibet in the early 1990s was a transformative experience that strengthened Jampa’s belief in the wisdom of our elders, richness of our culture and history, power of individual and community action, and hope for a stronger future for Tibet. Jampa has had the fortune of serving in various Tibetan organizations and projects. In the 1990s, Jampa co-founded the U.S. Tibetan Society for School and Culture, a small non-profit grassroots organization that supported the Swedish Tibetan Society for School and Culture, one of the first international groups to build schools in Tibet. Currently, Jampa is an executive member of the Tibetan Association of Boston (TAB) and also an active working member of the oral history project she helped establish called the Tibetan Resettlement Stories: Voices of Boston (TRS). She hopes that this project, consisting mainly of second generation Tibetans in diaspora, will inspire many others to tell their own stories and listen with open minds. |
|
TENZIN GELEK Program Officer at Latse Tenzin Gelek is a Program Officer at Latse. Tenzin manages Latse’s International Scholarship Program since 2018. Prior to that, Tenzin worked at Trace Foundation in various capacities from 1997 to 2017. Tenzin holds a Master’s degree in Nonprofit Management from Milano School of International Affairs, Management, and Urban Policy, New School University and a Batchelor's Degree in Anthropology from Oxford Brooks University (UK). |
|
DECHEN GOFF Lawyer and Adjudicator Dechen is a Tibetan lawyer born and raised in a small town in Canada. Dechen holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from the University of Toronto and a Juris Doctor in Law from the University of Ottawa. She is a member of the Law Society of Ontario. Dechen has enjoyed a diverse legal career, including working for different provincial and federal government departments; in private practice as a litigation lawyer; and, as counsel on behalf of various community legal clinics and advocacy groups. In 2017, Dechen was appointed a Governor in Council member of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada. |
|
TSETEN GYURMAE Central Service Tech at Massachusetts General Hospital Tseten Gyurmae was born in Tibet and raised in India. He had his early education at the Central School for Tibetans in Mussoorie, a hill station in norther India. After high school, he attended Christ College in Bangalore where he got his Bachelor’s degree in Commerce. He has more than 25 years of work experience in the fields of finance, education, welfare and rehabilitation within the Tibetan community in India. In 2001, he pursued a Master’s Degree in Sustainable International Development from Brandeis University. Currently Gyurmae works as a Central Service Tech at the Massachusetts General Hospital and he lives with his family in Boston. He enjoys reading and listening to religious teachings. For 5 years, he has been a volunteer teacher of Tibetan language at the local Sunday School because of a strong belief in the key role of language preserving our rich culture and heritage. |
|
TENZIN JIGME Student at Hunter College, Co-Founder of Behind The Peaks Podcast Tenzin Jigme is a pre-med student finishing his Bachelors in Chemistry with concentration in Biochemistry from CUNY, Hunter College. He was born and raised in Pokhara, Nepal before moving to New York City in 2011. He grew his interest in serving the community during his high school years which led him to starting Himalayan Club at Hunter College to create a space for Tibetan and Nepali students to prosper together and excel. Recently, Tsering Wangdue and Jigme started a podcast called Behind The Peaks which aims to celebrate underrepresented Himalayan professionals in the mainstream American discourse. And one of the main impetus for this initiative was Machik Weekend 2018 and the whole Machik community. In his pre-med journey, Jigme volunteered at Mt.Sinai Hospital and NY-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, and also did a clinical research at Weill Cornell Medical Center. He aspires to continue his journey to medical school. |
|
SONAM JYIT Client Solution Strategist, Co-Founder of LENZOM Sonam Jyit was born and raised in Amdo and moved to the US with her family at the age of 11. She graduated from St.Olaf College in May 2019 majoring in Economics and Management and currently works as a client solution strategist at a marketing company in Minnesota. She loves photography and videography and has a passion to tell stories through visuals. That is why she started LENZOM with her friend Tashi as a fun summer project during college. They invited some friends over and filmed them playing various games and shared it on youtube. The goal of LENZOM is to create an online space where Tibetans can feel heard and relate to. Sonam also enjoys designing and sewing clothes and traveling. |
|
TENZIN KHEDUP Solutions Consultant at Xandr Like most Tibetans in diaspora, Khedup was born in India and spent his childhood at the Tibetan boarding school, TCV, in Dharamshala. He immigrated to the US in his early teens and later graduated from University of Wisconsin Madison with dual degree in Computer Science and Economics. Khedup is an avid traveler and a global citizen; he has studied in South Korea, backpacked in Tibet and has traveled to over a dozen countries. He currently resides in New York City working as a Solutions Consultant at Xandr, an advertising technology firm. On his weekends he volunteers as a math instructor at YindaYin Coaching helping the next generation of students strengthen their math skills and provide guidance on navigating the higher education landscape. |
|
TSERING KYI Journalist & Poet Born and raised in Amdo, eastern Tibet, Tsering Kyi has been educated in Tibet, India, England and Germany. While in India, she became Miss Tibet in the early 2000s and later traveled to many countries to speak on Tibetan women’s and children’s lived experiences. Afterwards, Tsering studied English, Chinese and journalism while in Europe. For the past 15 years, she has written poems, lyrics, and articles in Tibetan and published three books of poetry. The high regard for her poetry in Tibet has led people to publish her collected works. Tsering Kyi is known to be the longest running Tibetan female blogger with readership totaling over 1 million, and was the sole woman in the well-known writers group Mirab Sumpa in Tibet. Tsering’s work reaches a wide audience of mainstream readers, including pastoralists, monks and nuns, students, educators, etc… Currently, she is active with several writers associations and works as a broadcast journalist for TV and radio. |
|
KHANDO LANGRI Student at McGill University Khando Langri is a joint honours undergraduate student at McGill University studying anthropology and political science. She recently completed an honours thesis on Tibetan Sign Language in which she explored tensions around language, disability, identity, sound and purity. Born in Huntingdon, UK and raised in Montreal, Canada, she strives to harness her lived experiences as a disabled Tibetan to enact meaningful change within her vibrant community. |
|
TSEWANG LHAMO Student at Baruch College, Co-Founder of Yakpo Collective Tsewang Lhamo is a graphic design student at Baruch College in New York City. She was born in Nepal but grew up in South India. She is influenced by pop art particularly Paula Scher's and Andy Warhol's works. Her Tibetan diaspora experience is also a source of inspiration. Tsewang is the co-founder of Yakpo Collective, an art collective dedicated to the Tibetan contemporary art movement and culture. Aside from graphic design, she enjoys photography and painting and hopes to launch a sustainable clothing brand some day. |
|
DOLMA LHAMU Marketing Director at World Financial Group Dolma Lhamu is the Marketing Director at World Financial Group. Born in India, she did her primary schooling at Central School for Tibetan CVP and received her Bachelors of Commerce from Bishop Cotton Women’s Christian College in Bangalore. She moved to New York 16 years ago to pursue the American Dream, starting her life doing various babysitting jobs. Today, she has been working at World Financial Group for 10 years, focusing on the National Campaign for Financial Literacy - a project that aims to reach one million people in North America through free financial education workshops by 2020. Her passion for her work is driven by her own experiences as an immigrant. By providing a platform for communities to access financial knowledge, she aims to empower people to become financially independent. |
|
KESANG MARSTRAND Singer-Songwriter Kesang Marstrand is an American folk singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Born in Woodstock, New York, to a Danish mother and Tibetan father, she grew up in Colorado and later moved to New York City. Her interest in music began at an early age, as she discovered her passion for music via a piano in the common room of a schoolhouse in Colorado. Marstrand has been writing and performing for the past decade. In November 2008, she released her debut album, Bodega Rose, a contemplative, acoustic work that includes accompaniment by renowned musician and composer, Karl Berger. |
|
PHUNTSOK MESTON Founder of Karma Fine Crafts Phuni ‘Kim’ Meston, Founder of Karma Fine Crafts, was born into a nomadic herding family in the Himalayas in the region of Ladakh, India—the ‘land of high passes.’ Her family later permanently resettled to the Tibetan refugee camp of Mundgod where she grew up in the south Indian state of Karnataka. Tragically, in 1985 as a young teenager, Meston was trafficked into the US. Years later Meston, now grown to a young woman, testified against her trafficker in a high profile trial that resulted in his conviction and prison sentence. As a survivor of human trafficking, Meston’s lived experience fueled her drive as an activist and in 1995 after completing a BS in Women’s Studies at Brandeis University and travelled to Beijing for the Fourth World Conference on Women. The greater Boston area has been her home for over 25 years. In 2006, after fifteen years of high-end fashion retail experience under her belt, Meston and her late husband, author and human rights activist Daja Wangchuk Meston, launched Karma Fine Crafts in Newton Centre. Located at 57 Union Street in Newton, this boutique continues to thrive today. Karma’s Winchester location at 560 Main Street is the Founder’s newest creation in her quest to cultivate a brick and mortar retail experience that demonstrates our shared interconnectedness through objects, art, music and conversation. Meston has always had a focus on community: her interests have included nonprofit organizations working to end domestic violence and human tra cking, groups with a cultural and social focus on a range of Tibetan issues and a great number of local schools and organization focused on youth and education. The nonprofits organizations Machik, Bharat and Transition House are all organizations which Meston and Karma Fine Crafts have supported through the years. |
|
MICHAEL MONHART Co-editor and Translator of Enticements: Stories of Tibet (SUNY 2018) by Pema Tseden Michael Monhart has a M.A. in Tibetan Studies from Columbia University and a M.A. in Ethnomusicology from the University of Washington. He has done fieldwork in Tibetan monasteries in Nepal and lectured widely on Tibetan Buddhist ritual music. With Patricia Schiaffini, he is the co-editor and translator from Tibetan of Enticements: Stories of Tibet (SUNY 2018), a collection of short stories by the renowned Tibetan author and filmmaker Pema Tseden. Michael is a psychoanalyst in private practice in New York City. |
|
TENZIN NAMDOL Adventure Cyclist & Writer Tenzin "Nam" Namdol is an adventure cyclist and budding travel writer. She was born in India and immigrated to the US at age 10. Formerly a student climate change activist fighting extractive industries like coal and natural gas, she now rides her bicycle full time and advocates for more gender and racial diversity within the outdoors industries. Nam is a co-founder of WTF Bikexplorers, a nationwide group that brings together women, transgender, femme, and non-binary cyclists for a 3-day summit and organizes long distance bike-backing tours throughout the country. She started her cyclo-touring journey, Bike for Tibet, in 2016 giving presentations on climate change on the Tibetan plateau in various US cities. She has biked in many US states, Mexico, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, and Greece. Her writings can be found online at The Radavist, Brooks Cycling Blog, and Bikepacking. |
|
YANGCHEN T. NANGPA Trial Attorney at the Committee for Public Counsel Services Yangchen T. Nangpa has been a member of the Tibetan Association of Boston (TAB) for over 16 years. She is currently a Trial Attorney for Children & Family Law Division at the Committee for Public Counsel Services. Yangchen grew up in Hunsur, South India; she came to the U.S. at age 14 with her family. She now lives with her family in Medford. Yangchen previously served as an executive member for TAB. In fall of 2018, she co-founded Tibetan Youth of Boston (TYB) alongside several other second-generation Tibetan Americans and within that group, she serves as an Academic & Career Development Coordinator. Outside of work, Yangchen enjoys reading thrillers, traveling, dancing, hiking, and other outdoor activities. |
|
DR. TENZIN NGODUP Auditory Neuroscientist Dr. Tenzin Ngodup is an auditory neuroscientist. He earned his undergraduate degree in Biology from Chandigarh, Panjab University in 2004. He then went on to get a degree in Education from Delhi University in 2005. After that, he worked as a science teacher at Sera Buddhist Monastic University in South India where he taught biology to Buddhist monks. In 2010, he received a scholarship from Tibetan Scholarship Program to pursue a master’s degree in neuroscience from the University at Buffalo (UB), NY. In 2012, He joined the PhD program at UB and completed his PhD in 2017. He has presented his work at many scientific conferences. Recently, he has been awarded Emerging Research Grant from Hearing Health Foundation for his work. He lives in Portland, Oregon. |
|
DR. KUNGA NORZOM Post-Doctoral Psychology Resident at Natalis Counseling & Psychology Solutions Dr. Kunga Norzom is a Post-Doctoral Psychology Resident at Natalis Counseling & Psychology Solutions in St. Paul, MN. She earned a Bachelor's in Social Work from St. Catherine University, and a Master’s in Social Work and a Doctorate Degree in Counseling Psychology from the University of St. Thomas. Her current practice includes individual and group psychotherapy, and psychological testing with teens and adults. Kunga is the founder of Tibetan Mental Health, an initiative on Facebook that destigmatizes mental health in Tibetan communities through education and awareness. Kunga's clinical interests include Stress Management and Mindfulness, Depression and Anxiety Disorders, Developmental Trauma, Intergenerational Trauma, Acculturation, and First-Generation Struggles (Identity Development and Familial and Cultural Expectations). She is a member of Asian American Psychological Association (AAPA). In her free time, she enjoys hiking and photography. |
|
DR. DEYANG NYANDAK Resident at Tufts University Family Medicine Residency Deyang was born and grew up in India. Her family moved to the United States where she finished high school in New Jersey. She attended Lehigh University for her undergraduate degree and majored in biology and psychology. She attended Harvard Medical School and is now a resident at Tufts University Family Medicine Residency at Cambridge Health Alliance. Her interests lie in women’s reproductive health and serving underserved communities. |
|
DR. YONTEN NYIMA Visiting Research Scholar, Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service, New York University Yonten Nyima is a human geographer specializing in Tibetan pastoralism. His main research interests are development and environmental policies, pastoralism, rangeland and natural resource management and access, indigenous knowledge and climate change, and cultural politics and resistance. Dr. Yonten Nyima draws from political ecology and political economy in examining rationales for, implementation of, and socioeconomic, cultural, political and ecological effects of China’s ongoing development and environmental policies in Tibet. He has published peer-reviewed articles on Tibetan pastoralism in journals including Society and Natural Resources, Conservation and Society, Human Ecology, and Area. Yonten Nyima was born and raised in Nagchu, central Tibet. He earned degrees in human geography (Ph.D., University of Colorado-Boulder, U.S.A., 2012), international affairs with a concentration in economic and political development (M.A., Columbia University, U.S.A., 2006), and meteorology (B.S., Nanjing Institute of Meteorology, China, 1994). Dr. Yonten Nyima worked as a researcher at Institute of Social Development and Western China Development Studies at Sichuan University in China from 2014 to 2018. Before joining Sichuan University in 2014, he worked as a meteorologist and researcher at Nagchu Prefectural Meteorological Bureau in the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR). Between 2001 and 2004, he worked as a project officer for the Basic Human Needs Project (BHNP) in the TAR funded by Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and implemented by Agriteam Canada Consulting Ltd. |
|
TENLEY PALSANG Tibetan Resettlement Stories: Voices of Boston Tenley Palsang was born and raised in Boston, MA and has been fortunate to see her Tibetan community grow and thrive throughout the years. She has been an active member of the US Tibetan Society for School and Culture and served as an executive member of both the Tibetan Association of Boston and Boston’s Tibetan Heritage Center Project. For the past 5 years she has been involved with Tibetan Resettlement Stories: Voices of Boston, an oral history project, leading the design team. As a full-time mother of two, she hopes her children will read these stories and gain insight into the strong and inspiring individuals who have paved the way for their future. Tenley is a graduate of Wheaton College with a degree in Asian Studies and Art Studio and continues her work as a consultant and buyer in fashion jewelry and accessories. She aspires to read more books (besides “The Gruffalo” and “All the Way to Lhasa” ), work on her art, and start her own business. |
|
PENCHO RABGEY, MSC Co-Founder, Machik Pencho Rabgey, MSC, is Machik's visionary cofounder and a true driving force behind Machik's work in Tibet. Pencho spent the first thirty years of his life as a scholar monk, studying with great masters in Tibet and India. He spent the next thirty years working in a factory in Canada building caskets. As one of the first Tibetan families in Canada, the Rabgeys set up the Potala Tibetan Dance Troupe in 1975, and, in the 1990s, Pencho founded the Chompa Tibetan Cultural Foundation. Pencho returned to Chungba in the 1980s with his family and subsequently dedicated himself to building a school for the local community. He withdrew his retirement funds as the seed money to begin Machik and to build the Chungba Schools. For his lifelong dedication to community service and citizenship, Pencho received the 'Special Achievement Award' from the Lindsay and District Chamber of Commerce, at its annual Evening of Excellence in 2014. In 2018, Pencho and family received the Meritorious Service Cross from the Governor General of Canada. |
|
TSERING RABGEY, MSC Co-Founder, Machik Tsering Rabgey, MSC has worked tirelessly to provide quality education for children and youth in rural Tibet. She continues to invest extraordinary time and energy to projects supporting the Chungba Valley community. She received the 'Special Achievement Award' from the Lindsay and District Chamber of Commerce at its annual Evening of Excellence in 2014 for her lifelong dedication to community service and citizenship. In 2018, Tsering and family received the Meritorious Service Cross from the Governor General of Canada. |
|
TENZIN SAMPHEL Senior Motion Graphics Artist at VIVA Creative and member of Indiginis Tenzin Samphel has been an animator for over 7 years from network television to corporate events around the US. He has participated in many forms of production from graphics for 2 presidential elections, multiple breaking news packages, and live corporate activations. His music group Indiginis with brother Ngawang Samphel has been a progressive force in contemporary Tibetan music fusing Electronic R&B and Hip-Hop having a total of 10 millions streams collectively on the internet. He currently works as a senior motion graphics artist at VIVA Creative where he produces motion graphics pieces for corporate events and occasionally attends them to see his works in action. |
|
TRISH SEWE Chief Operations Officer and Head of Communications at WildlifeDirect Trish Sewe is the Chief Operations Officer and Head of Communications at WildlifeDirect. Trish has over 13 years of experience in the communications, leadership and development sector, and has a Masters’ Degree in International Studies and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication and Sociology from the University of Nairobi. Prior to joining WildlifeDirect, she worked with GPI in San Francisco as well as nonprofit organizations at the grassroots, national and international levels. Trish has passion for leadership and works with young people to demystify tribalism. She is a self-motivated individual with a ‘can do’ approach and is passionate about empowering people with knowledge and skills that allow them to make informed choices. |
|
DROPEN SHEKA Student at University of Calgary Dropen Sheka is a 2nd year undergraduate student at the University of Calgary studying Neurosciences. Currently, Dropen’s research is involved in the field of oncology. His largest passions lie in health and education in which he exemplifies by running one of the largest Canadian scientific youth incubator programs, Youreka Canada, and has co-founded and is the co-chair of the Senior Wellness Association - a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the mental and physical wellness of senior citizens across Canada. Dropen hopes to improve Tibetan youth involvement in STEM-related fields by developing integrative initiatives to transcend any cultural and socioeconomic barriers that may fuel underrepresentation. |
|
SONAM SHERPA Student at Hunter College, Co-Founder of Behind The Peaks Podcast Born and raised in Kathmandu, Nepal, Sonam Sherpa has been educated in Nepal before coming to the United States in 2014. He is currently an economics student at Hunter College. He is actively involved in his community, being the President of Hunter Himalayan Club, a platform for Tibetan and Nepali students to celebrate their culture and to stay connected to their roots. After attending the 2019 Men’s Gender Workshop hosted by Machik in NYC, he has cultivated his passion for gender equity and remains vocal in the subject. He is also the Outreach Manager of the Behind The Peaks podcast which strives to spotlight underrepresented Himalayan professionals in the mainstream American discourse. In his free time, he enjoys hiking and exploring nature. |
|
TENZING SHERPA Continuous Improvement Analyst at JetBlue Tenzing Sherpa is an alum of Baruch College’s Zicklin Business School in New York City. During his undergraduate years, Tenzing competed in several public speaking competitions, most notably CUNY’s City Wide Annual Public Speaking Contest, where he won first place for his speech on The Model Minority Myth. In addition to his academic career, Tenzing has held a wide range of entry to Analyst level positions in the private sector. With previous experience in the Entertainment, Financial Service, and Non-Profit industries, Tenzing currently works as a Continuous Improvement Analyst at JetBlue’s headquarter office. |
|
DECHEN TSERING Co-Founder of ACHA-Himalayan Sisterhood Dechen Tsering currently administers the public health grants raised through the City of Berkeley’s soda tax, the first in the nation. She has worked in international development, philanthropy, women’s and LGBTIQ rights advocacy and community health education through Community Health for Asian Americans, Global Fund for Women, Seva Foundation, and Tibetan Delek Hospital. Dechen is a co-founder of ACHA-Himalayan Sisterhood, a volunteer organization empowering Himalayan immigrant women. She is a trained domestic violence counselor with the Asian Women’s Shelter (AWS) in San Francisco. Dechen lives in Berkeley, CA with her partner. |
|
DORJE TSETEN Translator and Broadcaster Dorje Tseten was born in Labrang, Amdo, Tibet. He received his early education in Chinese and in the early 1980s he attended Tibetan Homes Foundation in Mussoorie. He later studied at the Central Institute of higher Tibetan Studies in Varanasi and as well as the Institute of Buddhist dialectics in Dharamsala as an independent student. In 1983, he became an International Radio Broadcaster and then a senior editor and well-known TV host. Over the years, Dorje Tseten has translated many works from English to Tibetan including Animal Farm, 1984, The Prince, Letters to a Young Poet, Darkness at Noon, The Lady of Camellias, and Madame Bovary. |
|
DORJEE TSO Dorjee Tso was born and raised in a rural village in Amdo, Tibet. As the eldest of thirteen children, she cared for her younger siblings from a very young age. She set an example for her family and her village by being the first female to receive a Bachelor's degree in mathematics at the Qinghai Educational College. She taught mathematics and physics for many years at a secondary school in Repkong. In India, while Dorjee Tso and her husband owned and operated a small Tibetan restaurant, she studied English and taught Chinese at a school her husband founded. She later immigrated to the U.S. to begin her current career. She has long been an advocate for empowering women in the Tibetan community. Dorjee Tso is also an animal lover enjoys gardening during her spare time. |
|
KUNKYI TSOTSONG Design Student at the School of Visual Arts Kunkyi Tsotsong is a second year design student at the School of Visual Arts. With also a passion in fine arts, she mostly works with acrylic and oil paint. As she grew up into adulthood, her passion for art and her Tibetan identity strongly influenced one other. Today, she immerses herself in all art forms such as graphic design, painting, drawing, sculpting, etc. Although, the subjects of Kunkyi’s work vary, her work portrays personal emotions and experiences. |
|
TENZIN TSUNDU Student at Marist College Tenzin Tsundu is a sophomore at Marist College majoring in Philosophy and Finance. Tenzin was born in Meghalaya, India and was raised in Kathmandu, Nepal. He believes in pushing boundaries which led him to initiate and participate in varying activities. Before college, he took two gap years to help various grassroots NGOs across the Himalayas and finally settled down as an educator in Karkhana facilitating hands-on interactive sessions for middle school children to foster creativity and critical thinking. At Marist, he served as the President of Resident Hall Council, Vice-President of a multicultural club, and currently serves as a Resident Assistant. He is an avid learner with an insatiable thirst for knowledge and meaningful conversations. He adores adventures and cherishes helping others. |
|
TIM WARD Writer and Communications Expert Tim Ward is a writer and communications expert who also serves as a member of Machik’s board of directors. He has been a supporter of Machik from the earliest stages. He has visited Tibet three times, and has written about Tibet. Tim is also the publisher of Changemakers Books, co-owner of Intermedia Communications Training, and the author of nine books, including What the Buddha Never Taught, The Master Communicator’s Handbook, and, forthcoming, Pro Truth: A Practical Plan for Putting Truth Back into Politics (see www.ProTruthPledge.org for more on this new book). Tim is a frequent traveler and is based in the DC area. |
|
TENZIN YANGDON Registered Nurse in Family Medicine Tenzin Yangdon is currently a Registered Nurse in Family Medicine at a community health center in Boston. She was born in Patiala, India and raised in Boston, MA. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Simmons University. After volunteering for Machik Weekend in 2018, she grew a strong sense passion for community service and community enrichment in her Tibetan community. Yangdon is an active member of Tibetan Youth of Boston (TYB), which is a youth-led initiative that strives to empower and engage Tibetan youths in the Boston area. She is part of TYB’s Identity and Culture pillar where she co-hosts Machik Khabda in Boston. She hopes she can continue her contribution and her service to her Tibetan community. |
|
TENZIN YANGKEY Student at Duke University Tenzin Yangkey is a senior at Duke University studying Environmental Engineering and Innovation & Entrepreneurship certificate. She grew up in India and attended TCV schools there. Before Duke, she studied A-Levels in UK for two years under Pestalozzi Scholarship. Yangkey’s primary interest lies in understanding environmental challenges in the Hindukush Himalaya region. This past summer, she worked in Kathmandu on a project of increasing earthquake resiliency in Nepal. At Duke, she is part of Duke Machik Chapter that creates dialogue on campus about various social environmental issues in Tibet. |
2019 moderators
|
SHAOKYI AMDO Communications Coordinator at the Entertainment Software Association Shaokyi Amdo graduated from Vanderbilt University in 2018 with a major in Creative Writing and a double minor in Economics and Corporate Strategy. While in college, she served on the executive board of Vanderbilt’s nationally-recognized Alternative Spring Break program. She also co-founded Project YETI in 2017 with Tenda Thargay, which uses virtual mentorship to connect Tibetan-Americans pursuing higher education. She currently works for the video game industry in Washington, D.C. |
|
TENZIN CHOKKI Program Associate at Machik Born in India, Tenzin Chokki spent her formative years studying in various TCV boarding schools before immigrating to the States with her family in 2009. While in Boston, she completed her undergraduate studies at Tufts majoring in Child Development & Community Health, and also spent a semester studying in Athens, Greece. During college, Chokki worked with various research and community-based organizations, such as the Disparities Research Unit and Tibetan Resettlement Stories: Voices of Boston. These experiences pushed her to seriously consider and develop her passion for conducting community-based participatory research work in the fields of migration, belonging, psychosocial health, identity development, traditional knowledge, and growing community resilience & well-being. Currently, Chokki is a Program Associate at Machik where she is harnessing her skills in program development, design, and communications. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, cooking, music, photography, and the outdoors with loved ones. |
|
CHIME DOLMA Co-Founder and President of YindaYin Coaching Chime Dolma holds a M.A. International Educational Development from Teachers College, Columbia University and a B.A. in Political Science and Chinese Language from Middlebury College. She is currently the Assistant Director of Service Learning and a Faculty member in the History and Global Studies Department at Riverdale Country School in the Bronx. Chime is also the Co-Founder and President of YindaYin Coaching, an education focused nonprofit organization that primarily serves immigrant families in Queens, New York. Chime Dolma grew up in Tibet as an illiterate nomadic yak herder before leaving behind her family to pursue a chance at education in India. She immigrated to the United States, and despite her hardships was the recipient of several notable scholarships. She has had the privilege of speaking at various venues on education and her own unique journey. |
|
TENZIN NORDON Communications Manager, Get Ready Program Nordon was born in Chandigarh, India and lived there until she immigrated to the United States with her family in 1998. Since then, she has been living in the Minnesota Tibetan community where she has previously co-founded and served on the leadership boards of Lamton and Youth for Umaylam. She is currently pursuing her M.A. degree in Organizational Leadership through St. Catherine University. Her master's degree research project explores how we can develop the next generation of Tibetan women leaders. |
|
MARIAM RAUF Asian/Pacific Islander Domestic Violence Resource Project Mariam Rauf is a community educator on gender violence (GV) and an advocate for social justice and women’s rights. As the Outreach Program Manager at the Asian/Pacific Islander Domestic Violence Resource Project (DVRP), she leads the organization’s communications, training, and outreach programs. Mariam works closely with local and national leaders to address GV and the challenges faced by survivors. Prior to joining DVRP staff, she was on its board of directors including serving as board president. Previously, Mariam worked as the managing editor of a public health nonprofit’s external and internal communications. In between, she was a public servant with the U.S. government, where she stressed the importance of cultural competency and humility, while also advising officials on policy decisions involving regions in the Middle East and South Asia. Mariam is a proud Baloch and intersectional feminist who spends her free time photographing the streets of New York. |
|
TENZIN WODEN Graduate Student at Northeastern University Tenzin Woden, born and raised in Nepal, moved to CT in 2005 where she completed her secondary studies. She pursued her undergraduate degree in Environmental Engineering at Syracuse University. Since graduating in 2015, she has been working with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) within the Bureau of Water Resources. She recently began her graduate studies in Engineering and Public Policy at Northeastern University while continuing to work. Through her work experience as an environmental regulator, she has developed an interest in Water policy both nationally and internationally. During her time outside of work she is active within the Boston Tibetan community as one of the founding members of the Tibetan Youth of Boston (TYB). She along with her sister and mother also a part of the Online Tibetan Education’s (OTE). They recently hosted their 6th Annual Mindfulness Retreat that takes place every summer for young Tibetan adults. |