The beautiful and peaceful campus of JSW School of Law immediately impressed us. It is located on a hillside overlooking the town and the Himalayan mountains, at 2700 meters above sea level. For a tour of the campus, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyslybnn2Do
We were welcomed by Sangay Dorjee, founding Dean, the Chief Executive Officer of the Law School and Nima Dorji, Vice Dean for Academic Affairs and other faculty members.
Following a series of mutual introductions, we began learning more about policy development and the legal and regulatory history and system in Bhutan and the conversation soon turned to potential shared interests, areas for collaboration, and common challenges.
The representatives of JSW School of Law expressed their interest in collaborating with institutions in Nordic countries, provided they are based on principles of equity – values that we, too, naturally cherish. We took a small step towards establishing future research collaborations and institutional partnership.
Following our morning meeting and a tour of the spectacular campus, we were treated to a wonderful and colourful Bhutanese lunch.
In the afternoon, AFI researchers held a series of lectures in in what must be among the most beautiful conference rooms in the world, with a spectacular view of the Himalayas.
- Tereza presented her work on anti-corruption and regulation under the title Regulatory Capitalism, Anti-Policies and the Compliance-Industrial Complex: On the Cascading Failures of Dominant Governance Regimes and the Need for Alternatives,
- Inger Marie offered an in-depth introduction into the Norwegian labour regulation, under the title The Norwegian Working Life Model: A Bundle of Productive Tensions and
- Kristin Reichborn-Kjennerud presented her critique of New Public Management under the heading Sacrificing Sustainability at the Altar of Efficiency? The Case of Urban Development and Public Procurement of Food in Norway.
The lectures were well-received and offered a productive starting point for discussions that followed the next day.
