Thakur Dhakal: A Multitalented Professional from Virginia

Thakur Dhakal is a stormwater management expert and guides the formulation and implementation of stormwater management-related policies by the Fairfax County government in Virginia, one of the richest counties in the US. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from Tribhuvan University, Institute of Engineering, Pulchowk Campus, Nepal, in 1999, Thakur completed his master’s degree in project management at the University of Maryland, USA, in 2010. As of now, his areas of expertise include hydrology, hydraulics, erosion and sediment control, stormwater management, best management practices and their evaluation, Municipal Separate Storm Sewer Systems (MS4), Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL), floodplain studies, climate change and resiliency, sustainable development, project management, and comprehensive planning and policy for local governments.
Dhakal worked in the Department of Water Supply and Sewerage, the government of Nepal, from 1990 to 2005, first as an overseer, then as an engineer and division chief. He also worked as an engineer in Nepal’s largest drinking water project, the Melamchi Water Supply Project, in 2005.
Dhakal was the technical chair and proceedings editor at the Annual Conference of the American Society of Nepalese Engineers (ASNEngr) in 2015 and 2018. He is a registered professional engineer in the state of Virginia, USA. He presented his paper on “Sustainability through Resource Recovery: Beyond the 3Rs,” at the proceedings at the ASNEngr Ninth Annual Conference, Houston, TX, September 17–18, 2016. He was an instructor at the Stormwater Management Seminar organized in 2016 and 2017 by Halfmoon Education Inc. In addition, he instructed at the Storm Water Management Ordinance training to Industry, Engineers and Surveyors Institute Chantilly, VA, in May 2014. He taught at the Fundamental of Land Development, Engineers and Surveyors Institute, Chantilly, VA, in October 2016, and Fairfax County Policy and Procedure Updates, Engineers and Surveyors Institute, Chantilly, VA, in October 2013.
From 2013 to 2014, Dhakal was the president of B2 Toasters Toastmasters Club, Fairfax, VA, and the president of the Greater Washington, DC, Chapter of the American Society of Nepalese Engineers (ASNEngr) from 2012 to 2014. He was the judge of the worldwide Future City Competition 2016, Washington, DC, and is the vice president (2018-2020) and vice general secretary (2016-2018) of the American Society of Nepalese Engineers. He has been a board member of the Architectural Review Board, Franklin Farm Foundation, Oak Hill, VA, since 2015 to until now.
For all his contributions, Dhakal received the Champion Award in 2009, 2014, and 2016; the Land Conservation Award in 2011 and 2012; the Outstanding Performance Award in 2013; and the Team Excellence Award in 2018. At Toastmasters International, he was the Competent Communicator in 2010 and Competent Leader in 2013 and achieved Advanced Leader Bronze in 2015. He has also collected Dual Combined Administrator Certification in Virginia on Storm Water and ESC. The exemplary story of Dhakal’s life continues to touch the hearts of hundreds of dreamers worldwide.