A few encounters with eminent persons - CHENGDU, China

Dear friends and family,

It has been a while since the last time we post any new updates on our life. No... we haven't got a sibling for Akhtar just yet, but we have some other news that might be of your interest.

As some of you know that after a well-deserved maternity break and several temp-jobs here and there, I had finally gone back and taken up a job at the UN Environment Programme in Bangkok as Programme Specialist since November 2006 up to now. I will continue to serve while mas Nuki is completing his Doctorate programme. I had been quite busy in the past few months with missions abroad, which was exhausting but also fulfilling.

The first mission was to Chengdu (China), in which I had to deliver 2 presentations about the programme I'm dealing with, which is a grant programme for environmentally innovative projects all over Asia Pacific. Every year we select 12 projects, and up to now we already have 24 projects in 18 countries. My duty is to monitor the implementation and disburse the funds.

So anyway, in Chengdu, I had the opportunity to meet Prof. Emil Salim, who is the only eminent person from Indonesia invited in this Asia Pacific Forum for Environment & Development meeting. I was quite nervous to deliver my presentation in front of him, in addition to around 30 other former and current ministers from Asia. But I am grateful that somehow it went well, that I got compliments from Prof. Emil and the director of institute at the UN University in Tokyo, saying that my presentation was "interesting" and that I "didn't look nervous at all" - although I knew well that I was, but did a nice job covering it up ;-)

Here is a snapshot of me in between 2 prominent people: Prof. Akio Morishima (founder of the Institute of Global Environmental Strategies - Japan), and Prof. Emil Salim.

And here is the picture of the former Minister of Environment from South Korea, Dr. Kim Myung Ja. Note that she is a prominent female environmental leader, and I am amazed by the fact that everytime she speaks in the forum, she always gets the attention and follow up from other participants, as she deserves.

And of course at the end of the day we had the opportunities to do a bit of sight seeing around Chengdu, and I got to see the Panda Centre with heaps of pandas which are really chubby, fluffy, and cute...

It was just sooo good to be out and get in touch with the nature after whole days of meetings and a series of presentations.