Sikyong Mr. Penpa Tsering (Chairman)
Penpa Tsering was born in 1967 at Bylakuppe Tibetan Settlement, India. He studied at the Central School for Tibetans, Bylakuppe and topped the merit list in Class XII. He was graduated with Economics Major from Madras Christian College, Chennai.
During his student days, he served as the General Secretary of both the Tibetan Freedom Movement and Nigerian-Tibet Friendship Association. Later he served as the General Secretary of the Central Executive Committee of Domey. He then worked as the Executive Director at the Tibetan Parliamentary and Research Centre (TPPRC) in New Delhi from 2001-2008. Since 1996, he was elected consecutively in 12th, 13th, 14th and 15th Tibetan Parliament in Exile. In 2008, he was sworn in as the speaker of the 14th parliament and the 15th Parliament in 2008 and in 2011 respectively.
In July 2016, he was appointed as the Representative of His Holiness the Dalai Lama in North America to the Office of Tibet, Washington, D.C. He formally took charge on 29 August 2016.
In 2021, he was elected as the President (Sikyong) of Central Tibetan Administration and was sworn in on 27 May 2021.
Kalon – Department of Security (Co-Chair)
Kalon Kunga Tashi (Department of Security)
Kunga Tashi was born on 8 December 1963 in Lhasa, Tibet, to Thupten and Yangchen. He completed his primary, junior secondary, and senior secondary education in Lhasa. After graduating from senior secondary school in 1982, he came into exile the following year.
While in Tibet, he maintained contact with the Tibetan Administration in Exile. Upon arriving in Dharamshala, he was immediately assigned to the Research Section of the Department of Security (then known as the Hearing and Research Section), where he analysed and monitored developments inside Tibet. At the instruction of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, he was also tasked with translating Chinese documents and newspapers collected by Phuntsok Tashi Takla into Tibetan.
On 1 June 1985, he was appointed as a Junior Clerk in the Department of Security and was promoted to Senior Clerk in 1991. He was subsequently promoted to Section Officer in 1992 and Under Secretary in 1994 within the same section. Later in 1994, he was transferred to the Department of Security’s main office, where he was promoted to Deputy Secretary in 1997. In the same year, he was transferred to the Office of Tibet in Taipei, Taiwan.
On 30 April 2002, Kunga Tashi was transferred back to the Department of Security in Dharamshala, where he was promoted to Joint Secretary in 2004.
In 2009, he was transferred to the Office of Tibet in Washington, D.C., where he was further promoted to Additional Secretary in 2012. In 2014, he returned to the Department of Security to serve as its Additional Secretary.
In 2016, he was appointed Chinese Liaison Officer at the Office of Tibet in Washington, D.C., a position he held until his promotion to Secretary on 15 May 2017. On 9 July 2018, he assumed responsibility for the Research Wing, overseeing the monitoring and analysis of geopolitical developments within China and liaising with Chinese people at the Kashag Secretariat. He served in this role until his retirement on 3 December 2018.
From 2022 onward, he served on a contractual basis as the Tibetan Liaison Officer at the Office of Tibet in Washington, D.C., until his appointment as Kalon of the Department of Security in the 17th Kashag on 2 June 2026.
Over the course of his career, he has served the Central Tibetan Administration for more than 38 years, in addition to three years of service with Tibetan non-governmental organisations.
Kalon – Department of Information and International Relations (Co-Chair)
Mr. Tenzin Lekshay, Director
Tenzin Lekshay was a recipient of the Tibetan Scholarship Program (2006–2008) and holds a degree in International Relations from New York University. He also holds an M.A. in Economics from Loyola College, Chennai, and a B.A. in Economics from Madras Christian College, Chennai.
He began his professional career with the Department of Information and International Relations (DIIR), Central Tibetan Administration (CTA). In 2008, he was appointed Coordinator of the India-Tibet Coordination Office in New Delhi, where he worked on strengthening engagement with Indian stakeholders and Tibet support networks. In 2011, he briefly served in the Kashag Secretariat in Dharamshala before returning to New Delhi in 2012 as Media Coordinator at the Bureau of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
Throughout his career, Lekshay has played a significant role in coordinating and organising national and international conferences, programmes, and advocacy initiatives involving Tibet Support Groups and interfaith organisations. His professional experience spans international relations, media and communications, Tibet advocacy, public engagement, and the coordination of national and international conferences and programmes.
In May 2017, he joined the Tibet Policy Institute (TPI) as Deputy Director. On 25 September 2020, he was appointed Director of the Tibet Policy Institute, succeeding Mr. Tsewang Gyalpo Arya. On 1 July 2021, he was transferred to the Department of Information and International Relations of the Central Tibetan Administration as an Additional Secretary and was appointed official spokesperson of the CTA.
With extensive experience in international relations, strategic communications, media engagement, Tibet support initiatives, and policy-oriented programmes, Lekshay has represented and contributed to the CTA across a range of national and international platforms.
In August 2026, Tenzin Lekshay resumed his position as Director of the Tibet Policy Institute, where he continues to contribute to policy research, strategic analysis, and the Institute’s engagement with scholars, researchers, policymakers, and institutions in India and internationally.