The Buddhist IDGs Workshop

Organisation / Hub: IDG Bangkok Community Hub

Contact Person: Dr.Veeranut Rojanaprapa

Link: https://www.linkedin.com/in/veeranut-rojanaprapa-phd-a2781a180/

Contact Email: info.kidmai@gmail.com


Description

“It’s very beautiful.

The alignment of most organizations in Thailand with the SDGs has failed, causing negative impacts on all Thai people.

The ‘IDGs framework’ has emerged as a game-changer because it perfectly aligns with King Rama IX’s Sufficiency Economy Philosophy and the core principles of Buddhism, such as the Four Bases of Success (Iddhipada), the Four Noble Truths, and the Noble Eightfold Path.

The ‘IDG Bangkok Community Hub’ was established to bring together like-minded individuals—business leaders, academics, and innovators—driven to analyze and create practical, actionable tools for sustainable business management. The Buddhist IDGs Workshop includes a lecture on the significance, meaning, and beautiful connections of the framework, followed by hands-on practice across 23 skills in 23 workshops, enabling participants to develop real-world sustainable business competencies.

This tool quickly gained recognition from educational institutions, government agencies, SMEs, and large corporations, who realized that the IDGs framework was the missing piece, and the Buddhist IDGs Workshop was the key to their success.

In just two years of advocating for IDGs, it has become the cornerstone of Thailand’s sustainable economic revival. Organizations that have embraced the framework not only have the potential to achieve financial success but have also created genuine social and environmental value. The IDGs framework is no longer just a tool—it’s a pathway to building a truly sustainable society, reshaping the future of business and the nation.

How beautiful it is!


Learnings

We have discovered the beauty of both the deep meaning and the sequential flow of the IDGs across all five dimensions, as well as within each skill in every dimension.

We learned that the reason many organizations fail is that most focus solely on developing the ‘acting’ dimension, as it’s easier to measure based on capitalist concepts, without paying attention to the real foundation, which is ‘being,’ particularly the Inner Compass. This involves knowing who we are, what our responsibilities are, and what commitments we have to the public. Often, personal or organizational desires are mistaken for purpose, which is contrary to the IDGs’ Inner Compass. This leads to a completely misguided path from the start.

On the other hand, when the purpose is set correctly—doing good things for something greater—it has enough power to truly drive the organization forward. When we pose this as a question and think it through with the skills of the ‘Thinking’ dimension, it ultimately results in a clear, powerful vision that is both achievable and inspiring. This then leads to the next dimension, ‘relating,’ where the heart is ready to open and understand all things. The team is built with collaborative skills, enabling them to act with the necessary qualities to accomplish something new that has never been done before. Finally, it culminates in the skill of resilience, focusing on good causes without expecting immediate results. This aligns with the core of Buddhism—the Four Bases of Success (Iddhipada): aspiration, effort, intention, and investigation. It also corresponds with the conditions of the Sufficiency Economy Philosophy, which emphasizes virtue and not seeking instant gratification.

In summary, what we have learned is the beauty in both the depth and breadth of the IDGs framework.

How beautiful it is!

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2 Comments

  1. Website Visitor

    E-Book Buddhist IDGs

  2. Website Visitor

    Dear Buddhist IDGs Workshop Team! This is a very beautiful and inspiring story, especially as you are apparently trying to combine the ancient wisdom of Buddhism with the IDGs to build a pathway to building a truly sustainable society, reshaping the future of business and the nation.

    We are trying something similar for the water sector and had just recently a joint event with a Buddhist Center to find synergies between Buddhism ans sustainabel Water Resources Management (https://idg-water-net.org/2024/05/29/path-to-a-water-conscious-society/).

    As we are aiming at aligning the IDG skills with inner development approaches for a new vision for water, I would be very interested in getting more detailed information of the materials and aproaches you apply in the your “Buddhist IDGs Workshops”.

    Best regards, Michael

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