About us

Resources Himalaya Foundation (RHF) was founded by Late Dr Pralad Yonzon as semi-academic, not for profit think tank organisation registered under the government of Nepal (Registration No. 1791 DAO/Lalitpur). Initially established as Resources Nepal, a self governing private organisation, RHF later became an independent, nonprofitable research foundation managed by a Governing Board and administered by its Executive Office since 2004. RHF’s competitive edge over others is its ability to deal with the contemporary knowledge and issues connected with the nature conservation. This is substantiated by the fact that RHF was one of the eight recipients of the 2007 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, selected from several NGOs from six continents.

what we do

Resources Himalaya Foundation (RHF) was established as a research think tank on natural resource conservation by late Dr Pralad Yonzon. Registered with the Government of Nepal (District Administration Office, Lalitpur and Social Welfare Council), RHF is a not-for-profit research foundation managed by a Governing Board. It has over 35 years of experience in innovative research and capacity building in biodiversity, environment and livelihood in Nepal, Bhutan and Sikkim through nearly 250 research projects.

The milestones of RHF include the Nepal Biodiversity Action Plan, GIS Database of Nepal’s PA, Nationwide Database of Chure Ecology, Conservation Plan of Biodiversity of the Western Terai (Chure Region), Annapurna Conservation Area Management Plan, Elephant Conservation Action Plan and Snow Leopard Conservation Action Plan.  RHF also assisted in developing Rapid Biodiversity Survey Framework for all nine protected areas of Bhutan including Phobjikha Conservation Landscape Area Plan. Other notable research projects include the Count Rhino ’94, Status of the Red Panda in the Himalayas, Hornbill Ecology, Biodiversity and Forest Regeneration of Shivapuri Watershed Reserve (1989-1992), Thirty Years of Community Forestry Mapping Forest Dynamics in the Middle Hills of Nepal, Integration of Indigenous and Sustainable Knowledge for the Sustainable Use of NTFPs in Sagarmatha National Park and its Buffer Zone, F.I.S.H. (Fostering Indigenous Sustainable Harvest) for Climate Resilient Livelihoods in Middle Karnali Watershed of Karnali River Basin and Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA).

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what we do

Currently, RHF is conducting research on Surface Water Change and Knowledge Enhancement (SuChaK) partnership with USAID, Clean-Up Himalaya to Sustain High Altitude Heritage, Nepal partnership with European Outdoor Conservation Association (EOCA), Nepal Reconstruction Engineering Service (NRES) supported partnership with by USAID, Sustainable Development Goals Sub-Urban Platform supported by UNDP Nepal, and Bone Market Chain Analysis supported by Itoh. Bringing contemporary knowledge to deal with issues of natural resources conservation, and mentoring the younger generation to build the conservationists of the future are the two major thrusts of RHF’s work. In the last five years it has mentored over 250 university graduates and enabled over 75 graduates to engage in dissertation studies.

mission & vision

mission

To conserve biodiversity in the Himalaya, promote sustainable use of natural resources including soil, water, forest, rangeland, and to improve livelihoods particularly of the poor, disadvantaged and marginal sections of society.

goal

To promote “good science” to facilitate “informed and evidence-based decision-making” to secure both biodiversity and resource conservation and improved livelihoods of the poor.

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vision

Resources of the Himalaya are conserved for posterity and sustainably utilized for improving the livelihoods of its people.

Governing Board and Board Members

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Dinesh BHUJU, PhD
(Chiba University, Japan)Chair

Forest Ecology, Climate Change Study and Sustainability

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Dr Dinesh R BHUJU is an academician at Nepal Academy of Science and Technology. Besides his academic work on ecology and environment, he has been actively involved in the promotion of science. He holds a PhD from Chiba University, Japan.

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Prakash SHARMA, MA
(University of Pavia, Italy)General Secretary

Youth Entrepreneurship and Project Management

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Mr SHARMA has more than 15 years of combined experiences in development sector mainly programme design, implementation and monitoring in development sector mainly on child labour, education, gender mainstreaming, social dialogue, workplace cooperation, industrial relation, social policies, enterprise development, informal economy, youths and employment, training and capacity building. He has special interest in project cycle management, research and development.

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Prof. Rejina M BYANJU, PhD
(Tribhuvan University, Nepal)Treasurer

Environmental Chemistry, Air Pollution and Bioenergy

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She has been working on Water pollution, Indoor and outdoor air pollution studies, emission inventories, air pollution modeling, forest fire and risk assessment researches with respect to human health and environment. She has served as Resource Persons at various national and international meets, published about 50 peer review national and international scientific papers, co-authors of three reference books, production of TV programs, bulletins with the various environments related issues of the country, supervised several MSc and PhD dissertation researches.

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Prof. Ram B CHHETRI, PhD
(University of Hawaii, USA)Former Chair

Social Anthropology and Community Forestry

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Dr Ram B CHHETRI is a professor of anthropology at Tribhuvan University. His specialization includes community-based resource management. He holds a PhD in Anthropology from University of Hawaii, USA.

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Patanjali Y SHRESTHA, MA
(University of Wollongong, Australia)Board Member

International Relations and Sociology

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of Wollongong in Australia. She has wider experience working as researcher for women, ethnic groups, livelihood, forestry, school children and served RHF as Program Officer for five years.

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Medinee PRAJAPATI, MSc
(Tribhuvan University, Nepal)Board Member

Mountain Environment and Education

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She is working as Environment Specialist at Center for Education and Human Resource Development. Her role is to address the environment and social safeguard and School safety, review, draft policy, reports, correspondence and other documents, and monitor the implementation of safety and safeguard issues in the schools and worked as Research assistant in Nepal Academy of Science and Technology and been Coordinator of Environment Graduates in Himalaya.

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Deep N SHAH, PhD
(Johann Wolfgang Goethe-University, Germany)Board Member

Aquatic Biodiversity

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With over 10 years of experience in different roles at GOs, NGOs and INGOs projects over Nepal, he holds a PhD in Natural Science (Biodiversity and Climate Change) from Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Univeristy, Germany.

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Kamal Raj GOSAI, PhD
(Guangxi University, China)Board Member

Behavioral Ecology, Biodiversity Conservation and Management, and Climate Change

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Meena BOHARA, PhD
(University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, China)Board Member

Ecology, Biodiversity Conservation and Climate Change

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Prof. Pitamber SHARMA, PhD
(Cornell University, USA)Advisor

Geography/ Regional Planning

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in 2008. He is a geographer/ regional planner with wide experience in the Himalayas. He holds a PhD in regional planning from Cornell University, USA.

Our Team Members

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Gauri Shankar BHANDARI, PhD
(Seoul National University, S. Korea)Research Coordinator

Plant Molecular Taxonomy, Biodiversity

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He is interested in molecular phylogeny of Polygonaceae as well as the assessment of the impacts of climate change on biodiversity, and conservation implications focusing on the protected areas. His past work included DNA barcoding of Orchidaceae in Korea and exploring phylogeny and taxonomy of several genera of Polygonaceae including Bistorta, Fallopia and Persicaria.

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Kamal ADHIKARI, PhD
(University of Aberdeen, Scotland)Research Fellow

Ethnobotany and Biodiversity

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He completed his PhD at the University of Aberdeen in August 2014 on Plants, People and the Politics of Ethnobotanical Knowledge in Nepal. His current research focuses on the issues of climate change, biodiversity conservation and sustainability, and the way these influence the use of ethnobotanical resources in Nepal. Currently he is working as a Project Coordinator in IKI Project.

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Dipesh PYAKUREL, PhD
(University of Copenhagen, Denmark)Project Team Leader, IKI Climate Change Project

NTFP/ Value Chain

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Nani Maiya SUJAKHU, PhD
(Kunming Institute of Botany, UCAS, China)Research Fellow

Ethnobotany, Community Vulnerability and Climate Change Study

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Her research has focused on studying the relationship between farming community vulnerability and climate change in the Himalayas, using an ethnoecological approach. Currently, she is working as a research fellow at the Resources Himalaya Foundation, where she continues to conduct research and publish papers in SCI journals. With her extensive experience and expertise in the field of ethnobotany, Dr. Sujakhu is an accomplished researcher making significant contributions to the scientific community.

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Sheila GHIMIRE, MSc
(Erasmus Mundus Joint Degree Program)Project Team Leader, Rhino Project

Hydro informatics and Water Management

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Hydroinformatics and Water Management from Erasmus Mundus Joint Degree Program comprising five universities of Europe which includes: University Cote d’Azur, France; Brandenburg University of Technology, Germany; Newcastle University, United Kingdom; Warsaw University of Technology, Poland and Technical University of Catalonia, Spain. Her research interest includes hydrology, flood modeling and forecasting, climate change, global warming, DRR and watershed management.

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Naresh KUSI, PG Diploma
(University of Oxford, UK)Project Coordinator, Himalayan Wolves Project

Wildlife Conservation

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Naresh Kusi has a Post-Graduate Diploma in International Wildlife Conservation Practice, from Wildlife Conservation Research Unit (WildCRU), University of Oxford, UK and a M.Sc. in Environmental Science from Central Department of Environmental Science, Tribhuvan University, Nepal. His research interests include predator-prey dynamics, floral investigations and exploration of wildlife tourism potential in the Himalayas. Currently he is working as a Project Coordinator in Himalayan Wolf Project.

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Daniela VARGASS, MA
( Universita` di Pavia, Italy)Research Associate

International Cooperation and Development

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Archana SINGH, MA
(Tribhuvan University, Nepal)Program Manager

Communication and Operational Management

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Mamta ACHARYA, MBS
(Tribhuvan University, Nepal)
CMA
(Institute of Certified Management Accountants, Australia)Finance Officer

Accounts and Finance

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Currently, she is working as a Finance Officer in Resources Himalaya Foundation.

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Suvekchhya TULADHAR, MSc
(Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand)Program Officer

Climate Change

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Ms. Tuladhar has completed her Master’s Degree in Natural Resources Management from Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand.

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Bishnu ARYAL, MSc
(Tribhuvan University, Nepal)EGH Coordinator

Zoology

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Lal Bahadur BLONSecurity Guard

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Currently, he is working as a guard at Resources Himalaya Foundation.

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Nirmala THAPA MAGARHelper

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Currently, she is working as a helper at Resources Himalaya Foundation.

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