The Nepalese community in Australia is seen as one of the highly prosperous cultural groups. They have maintained good records in several professional fields as well as business sectors in the new land of Karma.
Nepalese professionals working in the field of agriculture, forestry, natural resources, and environmental management have recently decided to form an Association to foster scientific exchange and knowledge sharing between Nepal and Australia. In a meeting held in Sydney on 9 February 2019, they decided to finalize the ad-hoc constitution, according to which the “Association of Nepalese Professionals in Agriculture, Forestry and Environmental Sciences in Australia” will be formalized soon.
The newly elected President of the Association, Dr. Jagadish Timsina, announced at the end of the meeting: “This meeting has now given a conclusion to a process of discussion and consultation we started more than one year ago. I am glad we have come to a conclusion in a face to face meeting, after active engagements through emails, phones, and small-groups face-to-face discussions over the year with over 100 professionals working across Australia”.
The Ad-hoc executive committee includes 7 members and there is a plan to nominate more members to represent diverse States and disciplinary sectors. Other members of the Ad-hoc committee elected by the meeting are Dr. Hemant Ojha (vice-President), Dr. Sita Ram Ghimire (Secretary), Dr. Basu Dev Regmi (Treasurer), Dr. Aneeta Pradhan Shrestha (Member), Dr. Tek Maraseni (Member), and Dr. Yakindra Timilsena (Member). The Ad-hoc committee is tasked with launching a membership drive and organizing ANEPA’s first General Assembly in December 2019. That General Assembly will form a full-fledged national-level Executive Committee and the state-level committees in different states of Australia.
President Timsina has urged all Nepalese professionals and students from agriculture, forestry, natural resources, and environmental management fields in Australia to join ANEPA, which he said, “has an important mission to foster technological collaboration between scientists in Nepal and Australia”.
In the meeting Dr Hom Moorti Pant shared his experiences in running community organisations and provided suggestions for sustainably functioning the Association. Dr Sarba Raj Khadka who came from Nepal on his personal trip also attended this meeting. He highlighted several areas of opportunities for cooperation between Nepal and Australia in the area of agriculture, forestry and environment. Both Dr Pant and Dr Khadka were offered honorary membership to ANEPA. At the conclusion of the meeting, Mrs. Janaki Rimal Paudel (an agriculture graduate and a community leader) formally thanked to the organizers and to all dignitaries who attended this crucial meeting of the Association.
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