Kathmandu- The government has nominated three internationally-acclaimed experts to the Governing Board of Trustees of the National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC).
Minister for Agriculture, Forests and Environment, Geeta Chaudhary, also the NTNC Chairperson, picked the experts in line with the NTNC Act. In order to enhance the international image of the Trust and further speed up the scientific conservation works, Minister Chaudhary nominated Lord Camoys of the UK House of Lords, renowned conservationist Dr. Eric Dinerstein, and Australian Professor Wendy Wright as the Governing Board of Trustees for Nepal’s NTNC.
Among the international members nominated to the Board of Trustees, Lord Camoys, William Stoner and Eric Dinerstein are personalities connected with the history of conservation in Nepal. Lord Camoys, the eighth Baron Camoys (William Stoner) and the chair of the ‘UK Nepal Trust,’ comes from a family toot with a long and historic connection to political, diplomatic and conservation history in Nepal. He continues to contribute significantly to the conservation of Nepal’s biodiversity through British philanthropic efforts.
Similarly, Dr. Eric Dinerstein is among the scientists who conducted early and seminal research on the native feeding habits of one-horned rhinos and tigers in Chitwan National Park during the 1970s and 1980s. He also led the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) as the Chief Scientist for 25 years, focusing on the ‘Terai Arc Landscape’ project.
Professor Dr. Wendy Wright, who was the dean at Federation University in Australia, has been actively engaging in on-the-ground academic collaboration in Nepal for the past decade, involving Australian students in the preservation of sal (Shorea robusta) forests, management of buffer zones, and mitigation of human-wildlife conflict.
The Trust, which has an impressive history charting more than four decades, has carried out exemplary work in community-based conservation and biodiversity in Nepal.
The personalities appointed to the institution are expected to make significant strategic advancements in the NTNC’s policies and integrity.
