TBC Staff Profiles

Michael Rutland OBE

Michael Rutland first lived in Bhutan in 1971, when he assisted in setting up the Ugyen Wangchuck Academy in Paro and taught Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Mathematics there. Subsequently he visited Bhutan regularly, and worked briefly for the UN (ILO) as a Consultant in the field of Technical and Vocational Education. Since 2000, Michael Rutland has lived in Thimphu. He was granted a citizenship of Bhutan by H.M. The Fourth King in 2006. He was appointed an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Queen Elizabeth II in 2005 for services to British-Bhutan relations and also holds the Bhutan Coronation Gold Medal. He is currently a member of Bhutan’s Royal Education Council. He is a Founder and presently the Chairman of the Bhutan Society of the United Kingdom (www.bhutansociety.org). He is also a member of the International Council of the English Speaking Union. For six years prior to becoming the United Kingdom’s Honorary Consul in Bhutan, Michael Rutland held the appointment of Honorary Consul of Bhutan in the United Kingdom.