Dr Ramy Bulan joins WWF Board of Trustees
Posted on January, 01 2024
Dr Ramy is an academic and lecturer who works on International Human Rights Law with an emphasis on Indigenous Peoples
Gland, Switzerland (1 January): Dr Ramy Bulan, an eminent legal scholar, author and Indigenous person from the highland Kelabit community from the Heart of Malaysian Borneo, has joined the WWF International Board of Trustees.
Dr Ramy is a distinguished academic and lecturer. She is currently a Research Fellow, and Head of the University of Malaya’s Centre for Legal Pluralism and Indigenous Law. She works on International Human Rights Law with an emphasis on Indigenous Peoples. Her work focuses on access to justice, customary land rights, native courts, dispute resolution and restorative justice, indigenous knowledge and legal traditions, as well as forestry laws. She is the author and co-author of more than fifty books, chapters and journal articles. She has been invited as a subject matter expert internationally, including with the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP). Dr Ramy has also worked at a grassroots level, facilitating conflict resolution processes between government and corporate interests and Indigenous Peoples.
Since 2020, Dr Ramy has served as a Trustee of WWF-Malaysia, where she has helped guide the office in inclusive conservation approaches. She is also an advisor and board member of a number of other national and international organizations, and is an honorary member of the Consortium on Indigenous Community Conservation Area (ICCA).
80 percent of the world’s remaining biodiversity is found in the lands and territories of Indigenous Peoples. They are the most important guardians of nature and therefore a key partner in conservation. Their knowledge and first-hand experience provides invaluable insights and they are critical agents in efforts to restore nature and tackle the climate crisis.
Dr Adil Najam, WWF International President, said: “I am delighted to welcome Ramy to the WWF International board of Trustees. Ramy’s vast knowledge and dedication to Indigenous Peoples’ rights are crucial to WWF’s mission to champion inclusive and rights-based approaches to conservation. Her legal expertise and grassroots experience will be an invaluable addition to the international board. At WWF-Malaysia she has had a fantastic impact and set out visionary principles of engagement with Indigenous Peoples and local communities. I look forward to learning from her and working with her over the coming months to bring her vision and passion to WWF International.”
Dr Ramy Bulan, WWF International board member, said: “I am deeply honored to join the esteemed International Board of WWF, where the well-being of both people and nature stands at the center of its work. Recognizing the vital importance of this effort to support indigenous communities globally, I hope that my background in international human rights law, customary law and local community development, along with a unique perspective as an indigenous person from Asia, would enable me to contribute meaningfully to these crucial discussions and areas of action to advance inclusive conservation. I look forward to working with this wonderful team, to further WWF's important work"
Dr Ramy began her career in 1982 as a lecturer in the Institute Technology MARA (now UiTM). She was briefly a magistrate in the Malaysian civil courts and joined the Faculty of Law at the University of Malaya in 1993 where she was promoted to Associate Professor. In 1998 she founded the Centre for Legal Pluralism and Indigenous Law at the Faculty of Law. She has served as Deputy Dean of the Law Faculty and also as Director of the University’s Centre of Malaysian Indigenous Studies. Since 2017 she works as a Research Fellow in the Faculty of Law, University of Malaya. Dr Ramy has been admitted to the Rolls of Advocate and Solicitor of the High Court of Sabah and Sarawak.
See information about all WWF International Trustees here
CONTACT
news@wwfint.org
Dr Ramy is a distinguished academic and lecturer. She is currently a Research Fellow, and Head of the University of Malaya’s Centre for Legal Pluralism and Indigenous Law. She works on International Human Rights Law with an emphasis on Indigenous Peoples. Her work focuses on access to justice, customary land rights, native courts, dispute resolution and restorative justice, indigenous knowledge and legal traditions, as well as forestry laws. She is the author and co-author of more than fifty books, chapters and journal articles. She has been invited as a subject matter expert internationally, including with the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (EMRIP). Dr Ramy has also worked at a grassroots level, facilitating conflict resolution processes between government and corporate interests and Indigenous Peoples.
Since 2020, Dr Ramy has served as a Trustee of WWF-Malaysia, where she has helped guide the office in inclusive conservation approaches. She is also an advisor and board member of a number of other national and international organizations, and is an honorary member of the Consortium on Indigenous Community Conservation Area (ICCA).
80 percent of the world’s remaining biodiversity is found in the lands and territories of Indigenous Peoples. They are the most important guardians of nature and therefore a key partner in conservation. Their knowledge and first-hand experience provides invaluable insights and they are critical agents in efforts to restore nature and tackle the climate crisis.
Dr Adil Najam, WWF International President, said: “I am delighted to welcome Ramy to the WWF International board of Trustees. Ramy’s vast knowledge and dedication to Indigenous Peoples’ rights are crucial to WWF’s mission to champion inclusive and rights-based approaches to conservation. Her legal expertise and grassroots experience will be an invaluable addition to the international board. At WWF-Malaysia she has had a fantastic impact and set out visionary principles of engagement with Indigenous Peoples and local communities. I look forward to learning from her and working with her over the coming months to bring her vision and passion to WWF International.”
Dr Ramy Bulan, WWF International board member, said: “I am deeply honored to join the esteemed International Board of WWF, where the well-being of both people and nature stands at the center of its work. Recognizing the vital importance of this effort to support indigenous communities globally, I hope that my background in international human rights law, customary law and local community development, along with a unique perspective as an indigenous person from Asia, would enable me to contribute meaningfully to these crucial discussions and areas of action to advance inclusive conservation. I look forward to working with this wonderful team, to further WWF's important work"
Dr Ramy began her career in 1982 as a lecturer in the Institute Technology MARA (now UiTM). She was briefly a magistrate in the Malaysian civil courts and joined the Faculty of Law at the University of Malaya in 1993 where she was promoted to Associate Professor. In 1998 she founded the Centre for Legal Pluralism and Indigenous Law at the Faculty of Law. She has served as Deputy Dean of the Law Faculty and also as Director of the University’s Centre of Malaysian Indigenous Studies. Since 2017 she works as a Research Fellow in the Faculty of Law, University of Malaya. Dr Ramy has been admitted to the Rolls of Advocate and Solicitor of the High Court of Sabah and Sarawak.
See information about all WWF International Trustees here
CONTACT
news@wwfint.org