Biodiversity propelling Universiti Brunei Darussalam to Top 50 Asian Universities

Brunei Online 23 Jan 11;

Biodiversity is one of the five areas that Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) has identified as having a comparative advantage that will propel the university towards achieving its vision in becoming one of the Top 50 Universities in Asia by the year 2015.

Under the Science and Technology Funding provided by the government, UBD has successfully bid for funding support to carry out research in several fields including biodiversity. UBD staff are currently undertaking studies on small mammals, fishes and parasitic plants under this funding programme.

The Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre in the heart of the tropical rainforest of the Temburong District is another testament to UBD's dedication and passion in uncovering the wealth of knowledge that are locked in the living organisms in the terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems of the forest. The research centre has been host to diverse groups of people, from secondary school children who are on educational visits to world-renowned scientists and scholars who are learning to understand the rainforest ecology.

The university has also inculcated environmental awareness as a critical element in its GenNext undergraduate degree programme. Aside from instilling values of entrepreneurship, leadership and innovation, every UBD student is also expected to be responsive to the global challenges facing our natural environment today and tomorrow.

Considering Brunei Darussalam's wealth in biodiversity, alongside a strong government support for the conservation of the environment, UBD is bringing together a core group of research universities from around the globe to form a consortium to address, for both research and education, issues and problems related to biodiversity, climate change, and the environment.

The International Consortium of Universities for the Study of Biodiversity and the Environment (icube) is comprised of UBD, King's College of London, Korea University, Monash University, National University of Singapore, University of Auckland, University of Bonn, and University of North Carolina.

These research universities share a common vision and are committed to research and education on biodiversity, climate change and the environment. iCUBE will provide a framework to promote collaboration and co-operative activities for research, teaching and learning, drawing on complementary capabilities of the partner universities and in the process strengthening the research capacities of each partner university. iCUBE member universities are expected to actively promote research, especially multi-disciplinary research, thus providing opportunities for academic staff and students in the partner universities. It will tap on the research expertise and strategic advantages of each of the partner universities to address issues and problems of global significance, including climate change, sustainable development and the environment.

UBD is proposing for iCUBE's Secretariat to be established in the university to ensure proper planning and functioning of the Consortium. The Secretariat will facilitate the execution of iCUBE's activities, including major symposia, workshops, and international conferences targeted at issues relating to biodiversity, climate change and the environment, joint research projects or collaborative research programmes among the partner universities, exchange of academic staff and students, internship programmes for graduate students or post-doctoral fellows by partner universities, and public lecture series, inviting distinguish scholars to speak on topics related to biodiversity, climate change and the environment. - UBD Press Release