Pema Choephyel
Former Director/CEO, Bhutan Trust Fund for Environmental Conservation, Bhutan
Dr Pema Choephyel is currently serving on the Board of Royal Society for Protection of Nature (RSPN) of Bhutan, and as the Thought Leader of the Ecological platform of South Asia spearheaded by the World Bank. He retired from office in June 2020 and for 10 years was the CEO/director of the Bhutan Trust Fund for Environmental Conservation (BTFEC). During his tenure at BTFEC, the trust has seen enormous growth in its endowment fund and several safeguards have been instituted that enable BTFEC to qualify for National Implementing Entity for Adaptation Fund and Green Climate Fund (GCF). He also served as Board Members and Chairman of National Bank of Bhutan while serving on the Board. He was the Agricultural Advisor for Bhutan Development Finance Corporation Limited (BDFCL) and in 2008 joined politics under the PDP during the first parliamentary election of Bhutan. He completed his studies in Veterinary Sciences at the Bombay Veterinary College in 1985, following which he served in the Royal Government of Bhutan in various capacities, starting as the principal of Royal Veterinary Institute and later as the pedagogic head at Natural Resources Training Institute. He then served as the Chief of Extension and Chief of Research and was later appointed as the officiating Director of the Department of Agriculture under the Ministry of Agriculture. Following this, he was appointed as the first Director of the Council of Renewable Research of Bhutan where he served for 5 years.