Darshani De Silva joined the Bank in early 2008 as an Environmental Specialist covering the Bank’s portfolio on environment and climate change. She is currently the team lead for Environment and Natural Resources for Sri Lanka and the Maldives. She had led teams in the preparation and supervision of the World Bank operations, coving environment and natural resources management, and climate change adaptation and coordinating environmental safeguard work in Sri Lanka, the Maldives and Bhutan. She has contributed greatly to the growth of the environment and natural resources sector in Sri Lanka and the Maldives after many years of disengagement. Her experience covers working in countries including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, the Maldives and Sri Lanka in the South Asia region, as well as countries in Europe and Central Asia and Africa regions.
Prior to joining the Bank, Darshani has worked for the United Nations Development Programme for five years as an Environmental and Energy Analyst leading projects and programs on environmental and natural resources management, climate change adaptation and mitigation, energy sector development and disaster risk management. Prior to this, she has worked for International Union for Conservation of Nature, as a researcher in number of institutions such as Sri Lanka Association of Advancement of Science, University of Auckland and the Open University of Sri Lanka and teaching also in the latter two universities.
She has a Master of Science in Environment and Marine Sciences from University of Auckland in New Zealand.