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About IBER
- Message from Director
- Staff
Research Centres
- KBFSC
- BRC
Research
Education
Publications

About IBER
- Message from Director
- Staff
Research Centres
- KBFSC
- BRC
Research
Education
Publications

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Address:Institute For Biodiversity and Environmental Research, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Jalan Tungku Link, BE1410, Brunei Darussalam
Email:office.iber@ubd.edu.bnOpens in your application

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A study on Shorea albida population genetics in Br

A study on Shorea albida population genetics in Brunei’s peat swamp forests has been published in 'Genes & Genetic Systems’. The work, led by Dr Misato Ogasahara of Ehime University, Japan was conducted in collaboration with IBER, UBD and the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART).
The study’s findings have shed light on the genetic makeup of Shorea albida, a Bornean endemic peat swamp forest species. These peat swamp forests, forming over the past 7,000 years due to receding sea levels, hold a crucial role as refuges for unique species during climatic shifts. Despite challenges, the genetic diversity of Shorea albida in Brunei remains robust, potentially due to its dense population. This discovery suggests Brunei's Shorea albida populations hold significant genetic diversity, positioning them as crucial resources for rejuvenating populations elsewhere in northwest Borneo. This insight emphasizes the importance of safeguarding these refugial areas for the preservation of diverse ecosystems in the face of environmental changes.
#research #publication #plant #conservation #forest #collaboration #SDG

Dr Misato Ogasahara, a postdoctoral researcher at

Dr Misato Ogasahara, a postdoctoral researcher at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, recently conducted fieldwork in Brunei on an exciting project focused on assessing the genetic diversity of swamp tree species in Singapore and Brunei. Forest loss often results in lower genetic diversity of tree species within remaining forest fragments, which can impact forest conservation and reforestation. While in Brunei, Dr Ogasahara worked closely with the IBER Forest Ecology group, the UBD Botanical Research Centre and the Brunei National Herbarium (BRUN) to collect leaf and cambium specimens of various Shorea species, for further genetic sequencing. Her work is instrumental in unraveling the genetic complexity of these threatened species and contributing to their conservation.
#research #collaboration #plant #forest #conservation #geneticdiversity #SDG

Siti Nurzawanah Adawiah Binti Sibol, our UBD under

Siti Nurzawanah Adawiah Binti Sibol, our UBD undergraduate student majoring in Biology did her Discovery Year internship at the Heart of Borneo, Forestry Department, Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism. For her internship, she had the opportunity to be involved in a plant propagation research project for conservation purposes. Some of the plants being propagated are Hoya plants. Hoya plants are known to produce beautiful flowers. We thank Forestry Department for hosting and training our student.
#internship #student #plant #conservation

Tropical shads of the genus Tenualosa are commerci

Tropical shads of the genus Tenualosa are commercially important fishes, with five species are known to exist. Locally, the fishes are called ikan terubok. A team of UBD scientists, led by Prof Takaomi Arai, identified that the tropical shad samples from the waters of Brunei were Tenualosa toli. This species is highly prized for its meat and eggs. Subsequently, it is classified as Vulnerable in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. On the other hand, the fish samples from Perak in Peninsular Malaysia were identified as Tenualosa ilisha.
Photo is showing Tenualosa toli.
#research #fish #conservation #SDG

A team of UBD researchers including an MSc student

A team of UBD researchers including an MSc student, Irsalina Syakirah Md. Ikbal, and her supervisors, Associate Professor Dr Rahayu Sukmaria Sukri and Dr Norhayati Ahmad from IBER, published a review paper focusing on Bornean heath forests in Brunei Darussalam. These unique lowland ecosystems, facing increasing anthropogenic threats, were found to host significant endemism and species of exceptional conservation importance. The research emphasizes the importance of understanding the ecology of Bornean heath forests for their protection and management, with Brunei's pristine forests offering valuable opportunities for further ecological research in these exceptional environments.
#publication #research #forest #conservation #SDG

Plants mentioned in the Quran and/or Hadith: Ging

Plants mentioned in the Quran and/or Hadith:
Gingers (Zingiber officinale) are one of the species that is mentioned in the Quran belonging to the Zingiberaceae family. Cultivated in many parts of the world, gingers have been used as a medicinal plant in many traditional medicinal systems such as in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda and Western herbal medicines in addition to its culinary uses. Locally, gingers are used to prepare traditional medicines for treating stomach ailments, and also in food preparations and tea. The medicinal properties are attributed to the numerous active compounds found in gingers, which contain properties that include antioxidant properties, anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and many more. The UBD BRC living collections contain more than 30 species of gingers and is actively working on the ex-situ conservation of these valuable plants.

Halia (Zingiber officinale) yang tergolong dalam keluarga Zingiberaceae, merupakan salah satu spesies yang disebutkan dalam Al-Quran. Halia ditanam dengan luas di merata tempat dan telah digunakan sebagai tanaman perubatan dalam beberapa sistem seperti Perubatan Tradisional Cina, Ayurveda dan juga menjadi ramuan dalam ubat-ubatan herba di Barat disamping pengunaannya sebagai bahan tambahan dalam masakan. Pengunaan tempatan termasuk penyediaan ramuan ubat-ubatan dan jamu yang mengunakan halia bagi merawat kondisi seperti sakit perut dan juga dalam penyediaan makanan dan teh. Nilai perubatan dalam halia dikaitkan dengan terdapatnya banyak sebatian aktif yang mengandungi antioksidan, anti-radang, anti-bakteria dan banyak lagi. Koleksi kehidupan di bawah UBD BRC mempunyai lebih daripada 30 spesies halia dan bertindak aktif dalam pemuliharaan spesis-spesis halia ini.
#islam #plant #conservation #medicinal #SDG

Elle Sophia Binti Shahrul Zaman is our UBD Biology

Elle Sophia Binti Shahrul Zaman is our UBD Biology student. She did her Discovery Year internship at the Marine Biodiversity Centre, Fisheries Department, Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism. One of her internship activities, as shown in the photos, was learning about tilapia fish. We thank Fisheries Department for hosting and training our undergraduate student.
#internship #student #fish

Mr Khalid Al Ameri is an Emirati video creator who

Mr Khalid Al Ameri is an Emirati video creator who recently in his YouTube channel tells the story of his recent enjoyable visit to Brunei Darussalam. On 26 September 2023, he also visited the UBD Botanical Research Centre.
#brunei #tourism

Our UBD Biology student, Paul Hong Tan did a Disco

Our UBD Biology student, Paul Hong Tan did a Discovery Year internship at the Forest Rehabilitation and Climate Change Section, Forestry Department, Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism. One of the activities that he did during his internship was assisting with a tree planting project. In this photo, Paul is planting a native plant, Calophyllum. We thank Forestry Department for hosting and training our undergraduate student.
#internship #student #treeplanting #climatechange #SDG

The dense rainforests and unique ecosystems of Bru

The dense rainforests and unique ecosystems of Brunei Darussalam have provided a nurturing environment for a vast array of plant species, many of which have been used by the local ethnic communities for their remarkable healing properties. Raudha's current research project attempts to look into the rich traditional medicine knowledge and practice in Brunei and simultaneously seeks to strike a balance between harnessing the therapeutic potential of these natural substances and safeguarding public health.
#research #youngscientist #plant #ethnomedicinal

Monash University Malaysia visited Kuala Belalong

Monash University Malaysia visited Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre (KBFSC) in Temburong on 16 November 2023. Thank you for visiting us.

Prof Adeline Ting from Monash University Malaysia

Prof Adeline Ting from Monash University Malaysia and Dr Jun Ying Lim from National University of Singapore (NUS) visited IBER and UBD Botanical Research Centre on 15 September 2023. Both Monash University and NUS are members of iCUBE. Thank you for coming, and we look forward to future collaboration.

We bid farewell to Dr Jessica Comley, our colleagu

We bid farewell to Dr Jessica Comley, our colleague and IBER collaborator. We wish her all the best for her future undertakings.

Dr Salwa Khalid and Roshanizah Rosli from IBER att

Dr Salwa Khalid and Roshanizah Rosli from IBER attended an industrial engagement meeting in Politeknik Brunei Satellite Campus, Belait. The meeting was to exchange insightful and useful information that would benefit both UBD and Politeknik Brunei. We thank Politeknik Brunei for the kind invitation, and look forward to our future collaboration.
#education #engagement #sciencetechnology

Two IBER staff members, Associate Professor Dr Rah

Two IBER staff members, Associate Professor Dr Rahayu Sukmaria Sukri and Dr Salwana Md. Jaafar, attended a three-day Regional Workshop on Introducing Peatland Ecosystems and Sustainable Management for Southern ASEAN Member States from November 7th to 9th, 2023. The workshop was organized by the Forestry Department through the GIZ Sustainable Use of Peatland and Haze Mitigation in ASEAN (SUPA) Component 1 (SUPA C1) at The Centrepoint Hotel. The event was attended by peatland experts from Brunei Darussalam, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. The sessions covered various topics including peatland management, policies, the relationship between peatland and climate change, impacts of land-use change, peatland restoration, water management, stakeholder engagements, and hydrological monitoring methods in Southeast Asian countries. We thank Forestry Department for inviting IBER to this workshop.
#workshop #training #conservation #sustainability #peatland #climatechange

Camera trap is a unique camera that can be left in

Camera trap is a unique camera that can be left in the field for capturing the image or video of animals for research and conservation purposes. IBER conducted a workshop titled 'Camera Trap Data Analyses' on 9th November 2023. The workshop was facilitated by Dr Salwa Khalid and Dr Jessica Comley from IBER and FOS, respectively. The workshop provided training on camera traps, camera trap data management, and data analysis. The workshop also provided hands-on practical sessions for the participants using case studies from Brunei to perform their analysis. The workshop was attended by 11 participants comprising IBER and FOS staff, and UBD students.
#workshop #training #conservation #environmentaleducation

Our great pleasure to welcome Zhejiang University

Our great pleasure to welcome Zhejiang University (ZJU) and Hengyi. They visited Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre (KBFSC) in Temburong on 9 November 2023. ZJU is one of UBD close collaborators. Recently, both UBD and ZJU have formalised the renewal of their Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The MoU solidifies their commitment to continued collaboration between the two organisations.

IBER seminar titled 'Population Genetic Analyses f

IBER seminar titled 'Population Genetic Analyses for Peat Swamp Forest Tree Species' by Dr Misato Ogasahara from Nanyang Technology University, Singapore on 8 November 2023. Understanding the pattern of genetic variation shown by trees in our peat swamp forests is important for their survival and conservation management. By maintaining a genetically diverse population of a tree species such as Shorea albida will ensure that the species will adapt to future environmental changes and avoid inbreeding. We thank Dr Ogasahara for the interesting seminar.
#seminar #research #collaboration #conservation #sustainability #SDG #forest

A study by UBD scientists (Rafhiah Kahar, Dr Norha

A study by UBD scientists (Rafhiah Kahar, Dr Norhayati Ahmad and Professor Takaomi Arai) is the first one to explore the reproductive strategies of freshwater fishes in the Ulu Temburong catchment of Brunei Darussalam. The study revealed that cypriniform fishes in this region exhibited a year-round spawning pattern, which was not associated with environmental factors. The continuous spawning appears to be an evolutionary adaptation, allowing these fish species to thrive in the fluctuating hydrological conditions in their aquatic habitat.
#publication #research #conservation #sustainability #SDG #fish

UBD Botanical Research (BRC) is honoured to be be

UBD Botanical Research (BRC) is honoured to be be visited by Yang di-Pertua Negeri Melaka, Tuan Yang Terutama Tun Seri Setia (Dr.) Haji Mohd Ali bin Mohd Rustam, and spouse, Yang Amat Berbahagia Toh Puan Datuk Wira (Dr.) Hajah Asmah binti Haji Abdul Rahman on 9th November 2023.

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