Dr. Pema Gyamtsho Director General, International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)

Dr. Pema Gyamtsho is the first Director General of ICIMOD to come from the Hindu Kush Himalaya region itself, a fact that says as much about his appointment as his credentials. A Bhutanese scientist and former Minister of Agriculture and Forests, he spent over three decades working on natural resource management, biodiversity, and climate resilience before taking the helm of ICIMOD in 2020. He leads the organisation’s work across eight countries to protect the mountain ecosystems that feed and water over a billion people downstream, pushing hard on regional cooperation as glacial melt, floods, and ecosystem degradation accelerate across one of the world’s most climate vulnerable landscapes.