Brief Biography for David J. Singh, Ph.D., Iwokrama's New Acting Director General

22 February 2005

Dr. Singh is a natural resource management practitioner experienced in organisational capacity building, policy analysis, quality control systems, and establishing environmental standards. He is especially skilled at conceptualising and initiating strategic interventions to create organisational change, mentoring, motivating and challenging staff to set and achieve goals.

In his capacity as Iwokrama's Director of Resource Management and Training, Dr. Singh was responsible for the effective management of the Iwokrama Forest and the development of the Iwokrama Centre as an international “Centre of Excellence” for training.

Iwokrama will benefit greatly from Dr. Singh 's extensive related professional experiences. In addition to his ten years working in environmental and pollution management in Guyana, Dr. Singh has also collaborated extensively with governmental agencies and international organisations in Guyana, and been a representative for the Government of Guyana at national and international fora. Before joining Iwokrama, Dr. Singh served as the Director of the Environmental Management Division of the Guyana Environmental Protection Agency. Other previous positions include Chairman of the National Standards Council of the Guyana Bureau of National Standards, Chairman of the Environmental Assessment Board for the Guyana Environmental Protection Agency, and the National Coordinator, Science and Technology, for the Institute of Applied Science and Technology. Dr. Singh has also been a consultant or project team member for numerous other environmental management and research projects, and a senior lecturer at the University of Guyana.

A native of Guyana , Dr. Singh holds a B.Sc. degree from the University of Guyana, and a Ph.D. degree from Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.