Director General for Energy of the European Commission (DG ENER)

Ditte Juul Jorgensen

H.E. Ditte Juul Jørgensen took up the position of Director General for Energy of the European Commission (DG ENER) in August 2019.  She joined DG ENER from a position as Head of Cabinet for Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager. Mrs. Juul-Jørgensen has 27 years of experience in the European Commission. Before serving as Head of Cabinet, she was Director of Legal Affairs and Trade in Goods in the Commission’s Directorate-General for Trade at the World Trade Organization, where she managed European Union policy and negotiations at the WTO and involvement in dispute settlement and trade in goods. Prior to her appointment as Director, she served as Head of Unit and Acting Director for dispute settlement and legal issues, as well as Head of Unit for Trade and Sustainable Development and Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary Issues. Her previous experience includes a posting as Head of the Economic Section of the EU Delegation to the United Nations in New York and work at the European Court of Justice and European Commission Directorate-General for Competition. Mrs. Ditte Juul Jørgensen is a graduate in law of the College of Europe, Bruges, and the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

Ambassador & Head of Delegation, EU in Bangladesh

H.E. Charles Whiteley

Charles Whiteley is a Dutch and British citizen. After reading law at Downing College, Cambridge and qualifying as a barrister in the UK, he began working for the European Union in 1999. He worked for 6 years in the Human Rights and Democracy Unit of DG External Relations, with responsibilities including UN and OSCE matters, the rights of persons with disabilities and the rights of children.

Charles Whiteley was posted to the People’s Republic of Bangladesh in 2005-2009 as Deputy Head of Mission covering political, trade and press matters. He then served in Indonesia from 2009-2012 leading on political, trade and press issues. From 2012-2015 he was political advisor to the Deputy Secretary General of the European External Action Service, supporting political dialogues with partner countries and EU engagement with the G7. From 2015-19 he served as First Counsellor/Head of Division for Human Rights and Social Affairs at the EU Delegation to the United Nations in New York, acting as lead negotiator on several UN resolutions, including the UNGA resolution on the Rohingya refugee crisis. Between 2019 and 2021 he was First Counsellor/Head of Political,

Press and Information in Hong Kong. He was appointed as EU Ambassador/Head of Delegation to the People’s Republic of Bangladesh in September 2021.

Lead specialist, program leader, The World Bank

Gyongshim An

Lead specialist, program leader, The World Bank

Additional Secretary, Power Division, MoPEMR

Tania Khan

Additional Secretary, Power Division, MoPEMR

CEO, Moner Bondhu

Tawhida Shiropa

With 15 years of experience restoring youth, women empowerment, and social change, Ms. Tawhida Shiropa, the CEO and Founder of Moner Bondhu, started Moner Bondhu in 2016 with a strong passion for offering affordable and accessible mental healthcare services for everyone in Bangladesh. She has been a mental health activist for the entirety of her career and has taken many innovative approaches to help people speak about psychosocial issues and to raise awareness. She is an entrepreneur, young leader, mental health advocate, and popular columnist as a relationship expert. Her startup has provided mental health and well-being support to more than 4 million people and 300+ national and international organizations in Bangladesh.

Very recently under her leadership Moner Bondhu won the Tommy Hilfiger Fashion Frontier Challenge Award 2022 and was awarded 100,000 euros.

She is a certified NLP practitioner and led more than a hundred training programs on mental health and wellbeing. During Covid-19 Pandemic, her organization provided one-to-one counseling to 32000 people across Bangladesh and 10 foreign countries supported by UNDP Covid-19 Crisis Response Project.

In February 2020, she took part in the U.S. Department of State’s prestigious exchange program, International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) there she got a chance to take classes from the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Texas, and Temple University. She is also an Acumen fellow of the year 2020.

Along with Ms.Tawhida Shiropa had ten years of experience with the leading newspaper of Bangladesh and published more than 8500 articles on gender, mental health, education, youth engagement, awareness building, success, human stories, and lifestyle.

Because of her tremendous contribution during the Covid-19 Pandemic, Shiropa was rewarded with honors and prestigious acknowledgments. Ms.Shiropa was recognized as a “COVID-19 Hero” in 2020. She was awarded “Young Humanitarian of The Year” in the Mental Health category at “A Better Tomorrow CSR Awards 2021” by The Daily Star and CSR Window Bangladesh. She received this prestigious award for extraordinary efforts to make a difference through extensive work in the mental health sector in Bangladesh. She also won the 1st runner-up in the UN Women WEPs Awards 2021 Youth Leadership Category. The UN Women WEPs Awards recognize individuals and businesses that promote a gender-inclusive business culture and the achievement of gender equality in the Asia-Pacific.

Team Lead - Energy sector, AFD

Julia Boulenouar

Team Lead – Energy sector, AFD

Social Development Specialist, Gender & GBV, The World Bank

Sabina Parvin

Social Development Specialist, Gender & GBV, The World Bank

Programme Manager, Energy, European Union Delegation

Chiara Vidussi

Chiara Vidussi has 10 years of experience in working in South Asia, in projects covering infrastructure, energy efficiency, renewable energy and climate change mitigation, both in the institutional context, and the private sector investments area. She also worked previously for the European Commission in Brussels, in Development Cooperation projects involving blended finance and gender issues. She is currently programme manager in the energy sector at the European Union Delegation to Bangladesh.

Strategic Lead - Urban WASH, Waste management & energy, Practical Action

Uttam Kumar Saha

Strategic Lead – Urban WASH, Waste management & energy, Practical Action

Program Coordinator, Gender & Economic Inclusion, IFC

Zareen Tasnim

Program Coordinator, Gender & Economic Inclusion, IFC

Environment specialist, The World Bank

Bushra Nishat

Environment specialist, The World Bank

Founder, MOAR & Bohu

Nabila Nowrin

Founder, MOAR & Bohu

Executive Director, Voice & Views

 Jannatul Ferdous Ivy

Jannatul Ferdous Ivy, Executive Director, Voice & Views, has etched her name among the BBC’s 100 most powerful and inspirational women globally in 2023.

Jannatul started her journey in MDS in the Spring of 2007, shaping her academic prowess and resilience. By the fall of 2009, she graduated from BIGD as a beacon of strength and determination.

Life, however, had its plans. A tragic accident left Jannatul with 60% of her body burnt. Instead of succumbing to the darkness, she embraced the flames of adversity and turned them into a powerful force for change.

From the ashes, Jannatul rose as a film-maker, a writer, and a disability campaigner. Her journey took a transformative turn with the founding of “Voice & Views,” a human rights organization fiercely advocating for the rights of women who, like her, have survived burns.

Jannatul Ferdous Ivy’s name became more than just a name after she made five short films and three novels. Her stories went beyond the pages and screens, becoming a powerful tool to raise awareness about the challenges faced by people with disabilities. Her dedication to working for the rights of those facing challenges reflects the values instilled in our MDS alums at the BIGD.

Deputy Managing Director, Desh Group

Vidiya Amrit Khan

Deputy Managing Director, Desh Group

Programme Component Manager · GIZ Bangladesh

Shahbina Labib

Programme Component Manager · GIZ Bangladesh

President, BSREA

Engr. Nurul Akter

President, BSREA

Energy Team Leader, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

Shayan Shafi

Energy Team Leader, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

Director, SOLARIC

Naznin Akhter

Director, SOLARIC

ED, HR, SHV Energy

 Lamiya Bushra

ED, HR, SHV Energy

Managing Director, Grameen Shakti

Sohel Ahmed

Managing Director, Grameen Shakti

Consultant

Parveen S. Huda

Consultant