As Director for Research and Education at the Bhutan Ecological Society, Sonam oversees and provides leadership for all research and education programs at BES. He also serves as Program Manager at the Center for Climate and Sustainable Futures in Paro – an international environmental field program jointly hosted by the BES, Royal University of Bhutan/College of Natural Resources, and the School for Field Studies (SFS), Massachusetts, USA.

Prior to joining BES, Sonam was Senior Forestry Officer at the Ugyen Wangchuck Institute for Conservation and Environmental Research (UWICER) and served as District Forestry Officer under the Department of Forest and Park Services. Sonam has extensive working experience promoting community based natural resource management programs.

He has a master’s degree in forestry science from the Australian National University, Canberra, Australia.  Sonam explores linkages between community-based forest management practices and their impacts on livelihoods and poverty reduction. He is also keen on understanding the impacts of climate change on forest ecosystems and rural livelihoods.