Ashraf-ul-Alam Tutu was the founder of Coastal Development Partnership (CDP). Tutu was the freedom fighter in 1971 for independence of Bangladesh. After the great liberation war, he involved with different people's movement on issues such as water logging in Khulna-Jessore on Commercial Shrimp Farming, saving the biodiversity of Sundarbans, land rights and coastal livelihood. He was one of the pioneer environmental activists in Bangladesh. After the inception of CDP in 1997, he provided leadership role on various issues of natural resource management, environmental conservation, human rights and good governance to ensure the sustainable development of the Southwest Coastal Region of Bangladesh.

Since 1996, Tutu has been monitoring ADB projects in Bangladesh. He was one of the pioneer activists on monitoring Khulna Jessore Drainage Rehabilitation Project (KJDRP), member secretary of Sundarban Biodiversity Conservation Project (SBCP) Watch Group. He was International Committee (IC) member of NGO Forum on ADB; Chairman, Right to Food Movement, Member, Committee on Education and Communication (CEC) of IUCN; Bangladesh Chapter Coordinator Asia Pacific Network of Food Sovereignty (APNFS); Steering group member of Water for Peoples Network-Asia and Agribusiness Accountability Initiative (AAI)-Asia, and focal person/member advisor for different International, National & Regional Networks.

He was the author of more than 40 books and his publications are widely published in different International journals.

On 12th February, 2008 Ashraf-ul-Alam Tutu had passed away from this world but his spirit & vision still guiding CDP.