Our Team
THE EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS:
Ryen GEDION NAMCHU
President
Is a resident of Kalimpong who, after graduating in science, pursued a career in civil service spanning forty years. Recently retired from the Indian Administrative Service as a Secretary in the Government of West Bengal.
He brings with him invaluable working experience and knowledge of various departments in policy and programme implementation.
Ryen NORBU LEPCHA
Vice President
Retired as Deputy Commissioner in 2020 from Research & Analysis Wing under Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India after rendering meritorious service. He has been decorated with several honours for his exemplary service to the nation. These honours are – The Police Medal in 2010, Excellent Police Award in 2017 & the highest honour, the President’s Police Medal in 2018. Ryen Norbu lives in his hometown Kalimpong.
Ryen ABEL RONGONG
Secretary
Is the co-founder of the Rongring Course. Born in Kalimpong, he has always been an active participant in activities benefiting the Lepcha community and has been involved with lots of organizations working for the community in the past. He learnt the Lepcha language on his own and has gained so much experience that he now can read write and speak the language fluently. He even has translated lots of hymns in Lepcha. He loves to travel and enjoys spending time in the village and enjoys interacting with them to learn to their ways of life.
Ryennyoo Dr. MELISSA ZERMIT NAMCHU
Vice Secretary
Is from Kalimpong and a graduate of IIT-Mumbai with Masters in Philosophy in Planning & Development. She has only recently successfully defended her doctoral thesis in the field of Medical Anthropology from the National University of Singapore and the University of Edindurgh, in a joint degree programme, in which she examined the traditional healthcare practices of the indigenous Lepcha community that exists in the interstices of the medical landscape
Ryen JORDAN KINCHUM TSHERING NAMCHU
Asst Treasurer
Hails from Kalimpong, and holds a Bachelor of Science degree from St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi, and a Master’s Degree in Sociology from the Centre for the Study of Social Systems, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi. He is currently pursuing his doctoral thesis from the Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai.
Ryennyoo TERESA I. SERVOMKIT NAMCHU
Executive Member
Is an Assistant Professor at the Rishi Bankim Chandra Women’s College, Naihati, West Bengal. She has done her M.Phil in International Relations from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, Masters in International Relations from Sikkim University, and Bachelor in Social Work from St. Joseph’s College of Arts and Science, Bengaluru.
ADVISORY MEMBERS:
Ryen DR. JAMES S. SIMICK
He was in the pioneering batch of RongRing, our global online Lepcha Language course. The oldest student to join the course, his passion for unearthing the secrets of the Lepcha culture and mastering the intricacies of the Lepcha language is commendable. Born in Kalimpong, he did his medical graduation, post-graduation and clinical training in Kolkata, where he was also the former Head of the Surgery Department of a central government hospital for over a decade. Now retired, Dr. Simick lives in Kolkata.
Ryen S.T.S. LEPCHA
A former officer of the Indian Forest Service, and likes to say that he retired as PCCF/MD Forest Development Corporation of Uttarakhand, India. Currently, he is Advisor to Government of Uttarakhand, Bamboo and Fibre Development Board, Uttarakhand, the Editor-in-Chief of Journal of Non Timber Forest Products, Dehradun, and former Member of the Executive Committee of National Bamboo Mission, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India.
Ryennyoo JYOTSNA SITLING
The first female tribal officer in the Indian Forest Service. In a career of over 30 years, this IIM Bangalore alumnus has worked with both State and Central governments and, as an institutional entrepreneur, created participatory institutions, policies, instruments and programs in areas like biodiversity, poverty, gender, livelihoods, watershed, agribusiness, entrepreneurship and skills. A recipient of the Indira Gandhi Paryavaran Puraskar (2004) and the Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration 2006-07 for outstanding contribution to public service, she continues to work at the intersection of market, equity and environment.
Ryen Gideon. T. LEPCHA
A highly motivated and result-oriented management professional with a wide global experience in Product Management, Product Marketing, CoE setup & Business Development. He completed his B.Tech in electronic and communication engineering an earned an MBA degree from Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), Delhi. Rongring Global Online Language Course was founded by him which has now been taken over by the Rongring Lepcha Culture & Welfare Society.
Ryen SAOM TSHERING NAMCHU
He is the Indian representative of the Glenn Family Foundation, a New Zealand-based international philanthropic NGO that has been committed to development in different parts of Eastern India for over 17 years. He is also the Volunteer Project Director for the Cluny Glenn Family Foundation Village Development Work in Kalimpong. Besides, he has also Coordinator for the philanthropic works of Sir Owen G. Glenn, Founding Chairman of the Glenn Family Foundation, in Asia, particularly for a special project called ‘GFF Helps Program’. Previously, he was in the field of tourism with over 30 years of experience, and ran his own travel company catering to international clients travelling to India, Nepal and Bhutan.
Ryen CHEWANG RINCHEN LEPCHA
A graduate in Animation Film Design from the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, Gujarat. He is a member of Echostream, a multi-disciplinary design studio in Gangtok, Sikkim, where he has been working on developing a mountain economy powered by design collaborations with creative industries of the North-East and the Himalayan states.
Ryen NIMA D.T NAMCHU
An independent advertising and communications consultant currently residing in Florence, Italy. He was, till 2019, the Chief Creative of Officer of Havas Worldwide, India, prior to which he was the Chief Creative Officer – South West Asia for Cheil Worldwide.
In his 26 years in the Indian advertising industry, he has worked with multinational agencies such as McCann Erickson, Contract Advertising, Leo Burnett, Publicis, TBWA/Anthem and Sista’s Saatchi & Saatchi. He looks forward to returning home to Kalimpong.
Ryennyoo MINKET LEPCHA
An award-winning documentary filmmaker and an independent storyteller who believes that invaluable ecological widsom is hidden in ancient Lepcha folklore. She designs workshops based on the folklore of Himalayan Communities, especially Lepcha folklore, with which she inspires, influences, educates and helps young minds rekindle their connection with the rivers and mountains that surround them. She is also associated with various organisations involved in environment protection, sustainable development and the upliftment of local farmers and artisans.
In 2016, she was awarded the ‘Young Green Filmmaker’ at the Woodpecker International Film Festival for her film ‘Voices of Teesta’. And, in 2018, at the World Water Forum held in Brazil in 2018, the film was among the top 10 films out of the 110 that were screened.
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATE:
Jenny Bentley graduated from the University of Zürich in 2020 with a PhD Thesis on rituals, vulnerabilities and Indigenous belonging. She has been conducting ethnographic fieldwork in the south eastern Himalayas since 15 years. Additionally to academic contributions, she has been collaborating with a Sikkimese design agency in applied anthropology projects since 2010.
These projects focus on knowledge transfer through modern media such as animation movies, story telling, interpretation centres, and ethnographic workshops. Further, based on current fieldwork, she co-authored publications of the U4 Anti-Corruption Resource Centre that inform and advise members of the development community (funders, NGOs) with regard to anti-corruption measures on a policy level.
MANAGER:
Holds a Master’s degree in Social Work for Visva Bharati University, Shantinekatan, West Bengal. He was with the Pratham Education Foundation for 11 years and involved in ASER, a national level educational survey, as well as in the Monitoring & Evaluation Process for the program implementation team.
Born and raised in Kalimpong, Ryen Zerah had worked in North East India, Sikkim, West Bengal and New Delhi. He is also the Manager, who is responsible for day-to-day operations of the Society.
LANGUAGE CONSULTANT:
She is a graduate from Cluny College, Kalimpong and has a Master Degree in English from North Bengal University, She has been working as a para – teacher in Pochok Lepcha Night School.
She has learnt Lepcha language the lepcha night school in her own village. She has been teaching and helping in the course framework for the Rongring online course from the inception in the year 2020.