Annual Thematic Dialogue

Mr. Ricardo L. Calderon is Executive Director of AFoCO. He is a forester by profession who has served in the Government of the Republic of the Philippines for 33 years. He started as a field Forester and most recently as Assistant Secretary for Climate Change and Director of the Biodiversity Management Bureau in concurrent capacity handling programs and policies in protected areas and biodiversity conservation, coastal and marine management, and wildlife resources conservation.

Dr. Park Misun is Assistant Professor of the Graduate School of International Agricultural Technology of Seoul National University. Her research interest includes governance/regime, discourse and communication, policy strategies and instruments, international cooperation in forest management. She works as a Coordinating Lead Author of IPBES (Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) under the Sustainable Use of Wild Species. She is a Board member from Journal of Forest Research (Springer).

Mr. Alexandre Meybeck is senior technical adviser for the Forest, Trees and Agroforestry research program of the CGIAR, CIFOR-ICRAF. He is the lead author of FAO-FTA co-publications Climate change vulnerability assessment of forests and forest-dependent people – A framework methodology and Addressing forestry and agroforestry in National Adaptation Plans – Supplementary guidelines. He has been a senior advisor to the Assistant Director General of the FAO of the United Nations and also served in the French Ministry of Agriculture as head of the Environment and Rural Areas Unit and head of the Environmental Strategies and Climate Change Unit.

Dr. Chandra Silori is Deputy Executive Director of The Center for People and Forests (RECOFTC), based in Bangkok, Thailand. He has been working in participatory forestry management for more than 25 years, including nearly 12 years in southeast Asia. He supervises seven country programs of RECOFTC in south and southeast Asia. Dr. Silori has also been actively engaged in training and capacity development programs on various aspects of participatory forest management and climate change mitigation and adaptation. He has published more than 70 research articles in peer-reviewed journals and edited volumes. He has written many training manuals, guidelines and has co-authored books.

Mr. Chencho Norbu served as the first Executive Director of AFoCO from Jan 2019 through December 2020. Before joining AFoCO, he has served the Royal Government of Bhutan in various high-level positions in agriculture, forestry, and environmental sectors. During his service career with the government, he was one of the active negotiators from Asia and Pacific region, UNCCD in particular. Currently, he is senior technical advisor of AFoCO and a Jury member of Climate Innovation Challenge, Climate Adaptation and Resilience for South Asia Project, Asian Disaster Preparedness Center, Bangkok, Thailand.

Dr. Jürgen Blaser is Professor for International Forestry and Climate Change at the Bern University of Applied Sciences, School of Agricultural, Forest and Food Sciences, Switzerland. He is also the Global Forest Advisor to the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. Between 2002 and 2011 he was the Environment Division head and Deputy Director General of International Cooperation, the Swiss Organisation for Development and Cooperation. He had been actively involved in international forestry policy processes at the World Bank, ITTO, FAO, and UN. Dr. Blaser has also served on the Boards of CIFOR-ICRAF, Tropenbos and Tropical Forest Foundation, and is currently a Precious Woods Holding board member.

Dr. Lee Yeongjoo Lee is a Director of Planning and Budget Division at the AFoCO Secretariat. He has been working to restore forests and green Asia since 2009. As a researcher, he elaborated to identify conflicts between civil society and government on natural resources management and to find a way for solving it particularly in the field of protected areas management such as national parks and nature reserves.

Mr. Jin Sunpil, joined AFoCO as Vice Executive Director in February 2021. Having led overseas projects by the Korea Forest Service in AFoCO Party countries, Mr. Jin brings close to 25 years of extensive experience and leadership in both international and domestic forestry policy development as well as project planning and implementation. Prior to joining AFoCO, he served as the Director General of the Forest Aviation Headquarters of the Korea Forest Service and was in various senior management positions.