Friday Forum
The Friday Forum is the Institute’s flagship public lecture series.
Under this banner the institute brings eminent speakers from around the world that include great thinkers, change-makers, spiritual masters, scholars, politicians and the like to deliver talks in Bhutan. Organized usually on Friday evenings, the Friday Forum is a public lecture and interaction forum that lasts for an hour and a half including Q&A session.
The lectures are either held at the institute in Phuentsholing or in other places such as the capital. The lectures are advertised in advance through the institute’s website, mainstream media as well as on social media. These lectures are open to the public and anyone interested can register online through the institute’s website. Seats are allotted on first-come-first-served basis, and entry is free.
Given the eminence of the speakers and the relevance of the topics, the RIGSS Friday Forum has successfully captured the attention and attendance of a wide range of audience including cabinet ministers, senior public officials, parliamentarians, scholars, university students, businessmen etc. Their Majesties The King and Queen have also graced some of the RIGSS Friday Forum lectures.
As of date, RIGSS has conducted twenty-nine Friday Forum lectures as listed below:
| Sl. No. | Speaker | Date | Topic |
| 1 | Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay | 25/10/2013 | Bhutan: Changes & Challenges |
| 2 | Dr. Shashi Tharoor | 1/11/2013 | Democracy & Development |
| 3 | Amb. Pavan K. Varma | 8/11/2013 | Public Policy & Democratic Functioning |
| 4 | Lyonpo Sonam Tobgye (Retd. CJ of Bhutan) | 21/3/2014 | A Perspective on the Philosophical Basis of the Bhutanese Constitution |
| 5 | Amb. Shyam Saran | 28/3/2014 | Climate Change: Why Should Bhutan Worry? |
| 6 | Prof. Kishore Mahbubani | 31/10/2014 | Asia in Today’s World |
| 7 | Prof. Robert Klitgaard | 7/11/2014 | Leadership Across the Public-Private Divide |
| 8 | Ms. Suhasini Haidar | 14/11/2014 | SAARC: Beyond India & Pakistan |
| 9 | Amb. Gautam Bambawale | 13/3/2015 | India’s Act East Policy |
| 10 | HE Sogyal Rimpoche | 20/3/2015 | Leadership of the Mind |
| 11 | Amb. Dalip Mehta | 4/9/2015 | The Future of India-Bhutan Relations |
| 12 | Mr. Mani Shankar Aiyar | 15/1/2016 | Democracy-From Parliament to the Grassroots |
| 13 | Dr. C.Raja Mohan | 5/2/2016 | The Sub-continent in a Changing Asia |
| 14 | Sir Mark Tully | 11/3/2016 | Climate Change-The Need for Change in Lifestyles in the South Asian Context |
| 15 | Sadh Guru Jaggi Vasudev | 5/8/ 2016 | The Buddha Within |
| 16 | Gelong Matthieu Ricard | 14/10/2016 | Towards caring leadership and a more altruistic society |
| 17 | John Hardy | 18/11/2016 | Enterprise, Leadership and Social Responsibility |
| 18 | Prof. Marcus Du Sautoy | 17/3/2017 | Mathematics: The Language of the Universe |
| 19 | Dr. Parag Khanna | 12/5/2017 | Connectography: The Himalayan Dimension |
| 20 | Mr. Shivshankar Menon | 26/5/2017 | South Asia: Evolving Geopolitical & Security Issues |
| 21 | Dr. Ang Poon Liat | 25/8/2017 | The Secrets Behind Healthy Longevity |
| 22 | Chade-Meng Tan | 17/11/2017 | Search Inside Yourself: Mindfulness, Self-discovery and Leadership |
| 23 | Jonathan F.P. Rose | 9/11/2018 | A Well-Tempered Bhutan: Creating GNH Cities and Villages |
| 24 | Kishore Mahbubani | 17/06/2022 | Can Small States Survive? |
| 25 | Amb. Tommy Koh | 14/10/2022 | Nation Building: Lessons from Singapore’s Success |
| 26 | Dr. Hamid Rashid | 19/05/2023 | Global Economic Outlook and Implications for Bhutan |
| 27 | Amb. Rabab Fatima | 18/08/2023 | Bhutan’s LDC Graduation: Ensuring a Smooth, Successful and Sustainable Transition |
| 28 | Dr. Karthik Ramanna | 13/10/2023 | Driving Transformational Change |
| 29 | Dr. Shinichi Kitaoka | 08/12/2023 | Japan’s Development Journey: Lessons for Bhutan’s Transformation Vision |