March 2012 - Universiti Brunei Darussalam

Nursing students on team-buildingexercise in Temburong

2DiscoverCONTENTDiscoverNEWSDiscoverFEATURES32 Welcome MessageDiscover Features3 Student Focus5 HRH Visits UBD|IBM CentreDiscover News6 Eminent Speaker Series8 Minister Visits National College UK9 SOASCIS Signs MoU With ISTACAcademy of Brunei Studies Invited Speaker10 MoU wih STEPI Korea2nd CIIN Meeting11 UBD Freshers’ WeekUBD Library Briefing & Tour12 UBD Open Day 2012UBD Higher Education Exhibitions13 UBD Welcomes 5th UniBridge IntakeProfessor Pham Ky Anh’s Visit14 Yayasan Sabah Group Visits KBFSCIn Search Of Vine Snakes at the KBFSCLibrary Welcomes New Intake15 UBD Links with University of California12th AGBEP Meeting16 MINDEF Signs MoU with UBD17 Profile: Professor David KohUBD Library Organises Book & IT Fair18 UBD Visiting Scholar2nd ASEAN–Korea Frontier Forum19 Public LectureUBD Welcomes Yala Islamic University20 Professional Development WorkshopOngoing Faculty Research Seminar Series21 Community Outreach Programme22 OBBD Management Programme24 Study Abroad Programme26 New Appointments for 2012Discover Research27 UBD Joins LEAP2128 iCUBE Workshop Climate Change Research29 Introductory SeminarFlood Hydrology & Meteorology30 The Making Of a Classic in SEA StudiesWelcome MessageIt is my pleasure to welcome you to the first issueof discoverubd for 2012. I would like to take thisopportunity to wish all readers a Happy NewYear, and to welcome a fresh new intake ofstudents in this second semester of the 2011/2012session.These last three months have been busy ones forUBD. Apart from welcoming students back fortheir second academic semester, kicking thingsoff with our annual Freshers Week (p11), wehave also been privileged to welcome severalEminent Speakers (p6) as part of our EminentSpeaker Series, including His Excellency Mr.Sergey Lavrov, Dr. Seang-Tae Kim, and ProfessorDr. Datuk Osman. Their contributions to thedynamic academic and strategic discourse atUBD have been very much appreciated, as partof UBD’s commitment to internationalisation,collaboration and relevance.Our research community at UBD continues tothrive, with HRH Prince Haji ‘Abdul Malik in ourfeature article, consenting to visit the renownedUBD|IBM Centre at the Knowledge Hub inBerakas (p5). The academic conversation atUBD has also been supplemented by severalpublic talks, which have caused a lot of buzz,both by in-house academics (p20), as well asinternationally renowned scholars (p19), beingwell-attended by the public as well as ourgraduate students. Speaking of our students,they continue to achieve recognition locallyand abroad, as organisers, for example, of ourrecent Islamic Awareness Week, as hosts of ourinternational cohorts (p19), and as scholarsoverseas (p24).In the months since our last issue, UBD hascelebrated Brunei’s National Day, which alwaysserves as a time of reflection and re-orientation,a reminder of the role we play and will continueto play in national development, both in theminds and hearts that we nurture in our students,as well as in our contributions to informed policymakingthrough relevant and timely research. Aswe move forward in the new year, we reaffirmour commitment to this role through our researchand teaching.As always, we invite feedback and would like tothank all contributors to this issue of discoverubd.Best wishes,Hjh Anis Faudzulani Hj DzulkifleeAssistant Vice Chancellor(Corporate and Administration)EditorialContactInternational and Public Relations Officeoffice.ipro@ubd.edu.bnEditorial BoardDr. Teo Siew Yean, Dr. Kathrina DP Hj Mohd Daud,Hjh Nuairah Afifah Hj Abdul Wahab, Khairunnisa HjIbrahim, Daniel Wee Ming KhoStudent Focus: An Unforgettable InternshipAt The Forest Research Centre And RainforestDiscovery Centre At Sepilok, Sandakan, SabahBy Nadirah Abd Manaf (Discovery Year Student from Faculty of Science)His Majesty with UBD’s Discovery YearStudents at the Rainforest Discovery Centre.When we were briefed about the choices we had for where to spend our DiscoveryYear, the Sabah Forestry Research Centre (FRC) immediately struck us as the mostattractive place from which we would be able to acquire the most experience andknowledge.Six students from the Biology programme chose the FRC and our Deputy Dean, Pg Dr. MohamadIskandar Hj Petra made the necessary arrangements for us. The FRC is a huge research and educationfacility with more than 30 researchers engaged in research in fields such as plant diversity, naturalforest management, plantation silviculture, insect diversity, tourism, the utilisation of forest products,ethnobiology, biotechnology, tree breeding, watershed management, phytochemistry and pestmanagement.To get there, we flew to Kota Kinabalu and then took the bus to Sandakan. The journey from KotaKinabalu to Sandakan takes approximately six hours and the route is scenic with a majestic view ofMount Kinabalu along the way. The bitter cold bit us as we were passing Mount Kinabalu.When we first arrived in Sandakan, we were amazed by the city, which has many historical sites andexciting opportunities that we had never experienced before. Sepilok, where the FRC is located,is 14 miles from Sandakan. Sepilok is known internationally as a great place for visitors to view andappreciate wildlife in their natural habitat through the Orang-Utan Rehabilitation Centre and theRainforest Discovery Centre as well as the Kabili-Sepilok Forest Reserve.Dr. Lee Ying Fah, the Director of the Forest Research Centre, is a former student of our Dean, ProfessorDato Mohamed Abdul Majid, and he had negotiated a 12-week intensive internship programme forus with the FRC, including subsidised housing, beginning in January 2012. We stayed at the FRC GuestHouse which is located within five minutes of the centre. The accommodation and facilities providedwere excellent and exceeded our expectations. We usually travelled to town and market by bus everyweekend to buy groceries and other necessities.Currently there are numerous research programmes in the FRC in support of sustainable forestmanagement in Sabah. On arrival we were paired up and were assigned to one of three units –Systematic Botany, Tourism and the Rainforest Discovery Centre. We were moved from one unit toanother after 17 days so that all of us could experience working in different environments.

4DiscoverFEATURESThe training provided by the various units wasvery helpful and in many cases we were able toapply the theories that we had learnt in UBD toongoing research in the FRC. Some of us werealso fortunate enough to be involved in a largeexpedition to the Ulu Segama-Malua ForestReserve, which had the objective of assessing theimpact of ecotourism on the environment. Thetrip was a very rare and unforgettable experiencethat is not available to many. Our time at theRainforest Discovery Centre has definitely made usmore environmentally conscious.We were also involved in the social life at the FRC,which helped us to settle in. Standout momentsinclude a Lion Dance during the Chinese NewYear festivities, a badminton tournament in whichwe played against staff, and a Cultural Night. Allthese events helped us in building a good socialrelationship with the staff at the centre.5The highlight of our time at the FRC was the visitof His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah, theSultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam,to the Rainforest Discovery Centre on 3 March2012. Our monarch was pleasantly surprised by ourpresence there and we explained to His Majestythat we were there as part of UBD’s DiscoveryYear. His Majesty asked us to explain several plantsin the Plant Discovery Garden, with the help ofresearchers from the FRC. We were very fortunateto have had this conversation with His Majesty,during which His Majesty enquired whether weenjoyed our time there. Meeting and conversingwith His Majesty will always be a very precious andmemorable event for all of us.We would like to thank all those in UBD who wereresponsible for arranging our internship andthe kind people at the FRC for the wonderfulDiscovery Year experience.HRH Prince Haji ‘Abdul Malik Visits TheUBD|IBM Centre At The K-Hub In BerakasBy Dr. Saiful Azmi Hj HusainHis Royal Highness Prince Haji ‘Abdul Malik consented to visit the UBD|IBM Centre at theKnowledge Hub (K-hub) in Anggerek Desa on 28 March 2012, as part of a working visit tothe i-Centre.His Royal Highness Prince ‘Abdul Malik consented to visit the UBD|IBM Centre at the Knowledge Hub(K-hub) in Anggerek Desa on 28 March 2012, as part of a working visit to the i-Centre.The prince was greeted on arrival by the Permanent Secretary of Higher Education at the Ministry ofEducation, Dr. Hj Junaidi Hj Abdul Rahman, the Deputy Vice Chancellor of UBD, Associate Professor Dr.Hjh Zohrah Hj Sulaiman, the Deputy Director of the UBD|IBM Centre, Dr. Saiful Azmi Hj Awg Husain, seniorUBD officers as well as UBD|IBM staff.During the visit, HRH Prince ‘Abdul Malik consented to sign a “Lembaran Kenangan” (commemorativeguest book) and was briefed by the Deputy Director on the Centre’s current research projects, aswell as its future collaboration with dialogue partners, including local stakeholders such as the BruneiMeteorological Service and the National Modelling & Simulation Centre (NMSC), using state-of-the-artsupercomputing facilities at UBD.The Centre utilises an “open concept” setting that provides a conducive working environment for staffand students and encourages them to interact and discuss their research projects in an informal andcollaborative way. HRH Prince ‘Abdul Malik was able to witness some of these interactions during his visit,and participated in a live video conferencing call between the UBD|IBM Centre and IBM, India. HRHPrince ‘Abdul Malik was personally greeted by Dr. Manish Gupta, the Director of IBM Research in India.The tour showcased a few of the UBD|IBM Centre’s own inventions, including the N-plug (a smart plugfor energy efficiency), as well as some of the ongoing simulations, including the UBD|IBM weatherforecast model for Brunei.The tour ended with a photo-taking session of HRH Prince ‘Abdul Malik with the UBD senior officials andUBD|IBM staff. The prince also received a token of appreciation from the UBD Deputy Vice Chancellor.

6DiscoverNEWSDiscoverNEWS7Eminent Speaker SeriesBy Dr. Kathrina DP Hj Mohd Daud &Khairunnisa Hj IbrahimUniversiti Brunei Darussalam had the pleasureof welcoming His Excellency Mr Sergey Lavrov,Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federationon 29 January 2012. Present to welcome HisExcellency was Acting Vice Chancellor AssociateProfessor Dr. Hajah Zohrah binti Haji Sulaiman.Extract from the speech by H.E. Sergey Iavrov,Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federationat the UBD on 29 January 2012Russia is an integral part of the APR, and the Asia-Pacific is naturally one of our key foreign policypriorities. Our first priority is an active participationin building the regional architecture of securityand cooperation, further Russia’s involvement inthe ongoing processes of political and economiccooperation and integration.We intend to closely interact on the internationalarena, to develop humanitarian ties, to promotecontacts between people. We focus our attentionon the promotion of trade and economic tieswith the APR states. An emphasis is placed onestablishing modernization alliances on the basis ofinnovations in economic sectors with high addedvalue, on collaboration in high technologies, outeractivities space and other fields. We invite ourpartners to carry out large-scale projects in theregions of the Far East and Siberia.There is no doubt that the key foreign policy eventin the region for Russia this year will be hostingthe APEC summit in Vladivostok and ensuringour presidency of this forum in a highquality andeffective manner. We intend to maintain continuityin tackling the issues promoted by the pastpresidencies as well as fully implement our ownpriorities. Among them are further liberalization oftrade and investment activities and deepeningeconomic integration, cooperation for innovativegrowth, improvement of transport and logisticssystems, strengthening food security.I will pay special attention to the mechanism of East Asian Summits, which we joined in 2010. It is a uniquestructure that allows key leaders of Asia-Pacific region to discuss strategic issues of its development. In ouropinion, the forum is a natural format for developing a holistic concept of transformation of the regionalorder and establishing a new security architecture in East Asia.We have been consistently advocating the promotion of the central role of ASEAN in the region andconsider the Association to be an essential factor for the integration processes evolving here. To deepenrelations with ASEAN is among the highest priorities of Russian foreign policy in the APR. Over 15 yearsof partnership we have established an intensive political dialogue and were actively developingmultidimensional cooperation. The Russia-ASEAN summits held in 2005 and 2010 had a strong positiveeffect on the progress of cooperation. Now a crucial task is to accelerate the development of trade andeconomic ties.I would like to note that Brunei plays an active part in promoting Russia-ASEAN energy cooperation.Regular Russia-ASEAN Senior Officials Energy Meeting was held in Bandar Seri Begawan in July 2011 andin October the Minister of Energy of your country represented the Association at the International EnergyWeek in Moscow. I am confident that energy can become one of the most promising spheres of Russia-ASEAN interaction with the assistance of Brunei partners. A number of concrete proposals were putforward be the delegations of the Russian Ministry of Energy and Rosatom during their visit to Brunei last fall.Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh SharmaOn 11 February 2012, UBD had the honour ofhosting a public lecture by the CommonwealthSecretary-General Kamalesh Sharma, titled “TheCommonwealth: Adding Value for Global Future”.The event was attended by Yang Amat MuliaPengiran Anak Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah, as well asseveral foreign dignitaries of Commonwealth statesand ministry officials.The talk addressed ways in which theCommonwealth adds global value at present andhow it will continue to do so in the future, citing asexamples its groundbreaking work and innovativethinking on issues that include the rule of law,environmental protection, climate change, financeand international trade negotiations.Secretary-General Sharma also highlightedthe growing importance of tolerance, sharedapproaches, mutuality and embracing diversityin an increasingly compacted world. He spokeof the role of the Commonwealth as a figurefor global wisdom in the way that it convenesnations on every continent, of every size or stageof development, to devise practical solutions tocontemporary global challenges, an approachneeded more than ever in a time of widespreadeconomic stress and uncertainty.The Secretary-General also pointed out thatbecause Brunei has subscribed to the Affirmationof Commonwealth Values and Principles – whichdefines agreed standards and goals – its citizenscan expect their government to be working in thesame direction as the governments of 53 othercountries representing one third of humanity toraise standards and opportunities for all.Yang Berbahagia Tan Sri Dr. Munir MajidHead of Southeast Asia International AffairsProgrammes, LSE IDEASOn 24 March 2012, UBD continued its EminentSpeaker Series with a talk by Tan Sri Dr. Munir Majid,a senior fellow at the London School of Economics(LSE).Tan Sri Dr. Munir, the head of the Southeast AsiaInternational Affairs Programmes of the LSE’s Centrefor the study of International Affairs, Diplomacyand Grand Strategy (IDEAS), spoke about therole of Brunei and Southeast Asia in the ongoinginteractions between the United States and China.The seminar, which took place at the ILIA building,was titled “Southeast Asia: Between China and theUnited States”. In his speech, Dr. Munir maintainedthat Brunei has a key role in ensuring regionalstability as next year’s chair of ASEAN, whichincludes maintaining the region’s neutral stancewith regard to the US-China dichotomy.Tan Sri Dr. Munir gave another talk at UBD thefollowing Monday, 26 March 2012. Organised bythe Institute of Asian Studies and the Faculty ofArts and Social Sciences, the talk, “Intellectualpreparation for the Asian century”, was held at TheCore.Professor Dr. Datuk OsmanAnother Eminent Speaker Series event took placeon 19 March 2012, entitled “New Trends in IslamicStudies: Opportunities and Challenges for the MuslimIntelligentsia” and delivered by Professor Dr. DatukOsman Bakar (Emeritus Professor of Philosophy ofScience, University of Malaya). The event took placeat the Senate Room in Chancellor Hall.Professor Dr. Datuk Osman discussed new globaltrends in Islamic studies and their implications forthe Muslim intelligentsia, especially those who areattached to educational institutions dedicated tothe development and progress of Islamic studies. Healso highlighted the study of the religion, communityand civilisation of Islam and its interactions with therest of the world. According to the speaker, no singleinstitution devoted to Islamic studies can address allthe dimensions of Islam. However, with the growth ofinstitutions and programmes in Islamic studies all overthe world, the overall global concern with Islamicstudies shows a remarkable expansion both in theMuslim world and the non-Muslim world, especiallythe West.For the purpose of identifying these new trends,Professor Dr. Datuk Osman took the turn of the 1970sas the beginning of a very significant transformationin Islamic studies both in the West and in the Muslimworld. Referring to the new era as post-Orientalist,he also explained the new transformation in Islamicstudies, which embraces significant changes in thescope, content, and in the teaching and researchperspectives of Islamic studies globally, and howit offers both opportunities and challenges to theMuslim intelligentsia to “present Islam from its ownpoint of view” to the whole of humanity.To better understand these various new trends,Professor Dr. Datuk Osman also highlighted severalIslamic studies programmes in America, Europe,Japan, and the Arab world, as well our own Malayspeakingworld.Dr. Seang-Tae Kim, President of the NationalInformation Society Agency (NIA), Republic of KoreaOn 3 March 2012, the e-Government InnovationCentre (eG.InC) organised a public lecture whichwas delivered by the President of the NationalInformation Society Agency (NIA), Republic ofKorea, Dr. Seang-Tae Kim. The lecture was heldat the Institute for Leadership, Innovation andAdvancement (ILIA), Universiti Brunei Darussalam.Dr. Kim’s lecture, ‘IT Paradigm Shift and FutureSociety’, highlighted the importance of sustainingsmart revolution, utilising IT as a platform foropen innovation and creative collaboration, aswell as shifting to a new and open governmentoperation paradigm based on people power. Healso stressed that smart government is based onindividualisation, intelligent platforms and that ahuman-oriented smart society is key in evolvingfrom an IT powerhouse to a smart country.The public lecture was attended by senior officialsfrom various government agencies, privateagencies, academics of UBD as well as members ofthe public.

8DiscoverNEWSDiscoverNEWS9SOASCIS inks MoU with ISTACBy Associate Professor Dr. Azman AhmadMinister visits National College for SchoolLeadership (UK)By Shamsiah Zuraini Kanchanawati Hj TajuddinSchool leadership is moving up theagenda around the world and majorstudies have demonstrated that schoolleadership is second only to classroomteaching as an influence on pupillearning. Considering that school leadersof the 21st century are operating withina fast moving, complex and diverseenvironment, it is absolutely crucial thatthe best leaders run schools. In Brunei,one of the Ministry of Education (MoE)initiatives to promote the quality ofschool leadership is to introduce a formallicensing programme for head teachers.It is on the MoE agenda to have allschool heads in Brunei undergo a seriesof headship training sessions which wouldeventually award them the InternationalProfessional Qualification for Headships(IPQH).For this purpose, in the week of 16-20 January 2012,a group of officers from the Institute for Leadership,Innovation and Advancement (ILIA) and the SultanHassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education (SHBIE)along with two head teachers from secondaryand primary schools in Brunei visited the NationalCollege for School Leadership (NCSL) in NottinghamUK. This delegation was joined later in the week byYB Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Kerna Dato Seri Setia HjAwang Abu Bakar, Minister of Education and DatoPaduka Dr. Hj Zulkarnain Hj Hanafi, Vice Chancellorof Universiti Brunei Darussalam for a meeting withNCSL officials. The purpose of this visit and meetingwas to explore the possibility of collaborationwith the College for future licensing programmes.The visiting group also had the opportunity tobenchmark and observe first-hand the schoolleadership operation of outstanding academyschools in Nottingham. Such excellent leadershipwould contribute greatly towards transformingBrunei schools into ‘Model Schools’ – a conceptenvisioned by the MoE. This licensing programmewill combine with the existing School LeadershipProgramme (SLP) offered by ILIA in UBD and willhave a greater ability to ensure that Brunei’s schoolleaders have the breadth of skills and knowledgeneeded for them to undertake the challenge ofimproving the lives of Bruneian children.The NCSL is the first college in the world uniquelydedicated to the professional developmentof school leaders. In the UK, the NCSL plays acentral role in supporting school leaders to driveimprovement in the school system and to fostera decentralized culture of self-improvement inschools. The focus of their work is to develop andinspire great leaders of schools especially in theearly years setting and children’s services so thatthey make a positive difference to children’s lives.In England, this leadership programme has helpedto improve the capacity and performance ofEngland’s school leaders and it is hoped that sucha programme in Brunei will enhance and nurturethe capacity and performance of Brunei schoolheads in driving improvements in our schools.The Sultan Omar ‘Ali Saifuddien Centre for IslamicStudies (SOASCIS) of Universiti Brunei Darussalam(UBD) and the International Institute of IslamicThought and Civilisation (ISTAC) of InternationalIslamic University Malaysia (IIUM) have agreed tofurther bilateral cooperation in research, educationand training with the signing of a Memorandum ofUnderstanding (MoU) on the 29 February 2012.Under the MoU, the two research centres willconduct scholarly visits and exchanges of researchfellows, postdoctoral fellows and academics,joint supervision of graduate research students,joint research projects and publications as wellas exchanges of publications, materials andinformation in the area of contemporary issues inthe framework of Islamic world view and values.“I have the singular pleasure to congratulateyou personally and your renowned University forestablishing SOASCIS, which, I trust, will be a leadingcentre of Islamic Studies,” said Professor Dr. HassanAhmed Ibrahim, Dean of ISTAC.The MoU was signed by SOASCIS Interim Director,Associate Professor Dr. Azman Ahmad and ISTACDean, Professor Dr. Hassan Ahmed Ibrahim atISTAC, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.Also present at the event were SOASCIS Advisorand Eminent Visiting Professor, Tan Sri Professor Dr.Muhammad Kamal Hassan, Dean of Faculty ofBusiness, Economics and Policy Studies, Dr. HazriKifle, and SOASCIS Lecturer, Dr. Hj Adanan Hj Basar.ISTAC was officially launched by the formerPrime Minister Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamed on4 October 1991, as a research and graduateinstitution offering degrees in Islamic civilisationand Islamic science. From 1991 to 2002, ISTAC wasan autonomous body affiliated to the IIUM, andsince 2002, it was recognised as one of the facultiesof IIUM. ISTAC is also known to reputable scholarsas having one of the world’s largest and mostauthoritative libraries on Islamic studies and studieson comparative thought and civilisation. Thelibrary’s entire collection now consists of 160,000volumes.Academy of Brunei Studies invites DeputyDirector of the Anti-Corruption Bureau tospeak on corruptionBy Zulhilmi Hj JaidinOn the 6 March 2012, the Academy of Brunei Studies (APB) invited a guest speaker to deliver a lecturefor the university’s compulsory breadth module PB-1501 Melayu Islam Beraja (Malay Islamic Monarchy).The guest speaker, Awang Hj Abd Raub Hj Mohd Yassin, the Deputy Director of Anti-Corruption Bureau,delivered a lecture entitled “Malay Islamic Monarchy in Combating Corruption”. The lecture wasattended by around 400 UBD undergraduates.The lecture addressed corruption in Brunei Darussalam as a problem that cannot be underestimated. Itwas approached from various angles including the national and Islamic perspective. Awang Hj Abd Raubstressed that Islam as well as the national law forbids acts of corruption because it is an immoral act, andcould also result in severe losses to individuals, as well as the government. He also explained the impactof corruption on the family, society and nation. He suggested that crimes related to corruption can beprevented by observing and practicing the positive values found in the Malay Islamic Monarchy concept.He argued that the family plays a major role in shaping children, and therefore must ensure that childrenconsistently observe accepted ethics and moral values in society and comply with national regulationsand laws.

10MoU with Science andTechnology PolicyInstitute (STEPI) of KoreaBy Dalila DeliDiscoverNEWS11Universiti Brunei Darussalam signed a Memorandumof Understanding (MoU) with the Science andTechnology Policy Institute (STEPI) of the Republicof Korea on 28 December 2011, which establishesa basis of cooperation and collaboration in thefield of science, technology and innovation (STI)between the two institutions.In addition, the MoU promotes opportunities forjoint or collaborative research, exchange of facultymembers, sharing of STI information and alsocooperation in other areas of mutual interests.The MoU was signed by Dato Paduka Dr. HjZulkarnain Hj Hanafi, Vice Chancellor of UBD andDr. Jong Guk Song, the president of STEPI. Dr.Jong Guk Song expressed his appreciation of theMoU and said that as, “a government-fundedresearch institute, [STEPI] is dealing with science andtechnology policy and planning as well as forginginternational collaboration with countries who liketo develop their innovation industry.”While here, the STEPI delegations met withrepresentatives from UBD, as well as those fromthe Brunei Economic Development Board (BEDB),the Department of Economic Planning andDevelopment (DEPD), the Ministry of Development(MOD) and the Centre for Strategic and PolicyStudies (CSPS), to discuss potential cooperationopportunities.The STEPI representatives expressed their support ofBrunei’s initiatives to increase research investmentto diversify and deepen its industrial structure,which may facilitate the country’s move towardsachieving its national goals under the banner ofWawasan 2035.Under the MoU, Brunei would benefit from STEPI’sassistance in the development of Brunei’s STIinitiative and in achieving Wawasan 2035 bythe setting of collective goals, appropriateorganisational arrangements and operationalmodels, innovation programs and governingmechanisms, as well as institutional capacities.STEPI, created in 1987, is a government supportedscience and technology (S&T) policy researchinstitute under the South Korean prime minister’soffice. STEPI has contributed to the realization ofKorea as a creative S&T superpower. It serves as aknowledge hub to help Korea develop a worldclasseconomy and establish an open communitywhere members can share creativity and passion.Currently STEPI is expanding its global partnershipand is aiming to be a globally recognised STI policythink-tank that can contribute to solving globalchallenges.2nd CurriculumInnovationInternationalNetwork MeetingBy Dr. Anita Binurul Zahrina POKLW DSS HjAwang Abdul AzizUniversiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) hosted the second gathering of the Curriculum Innovation InternationalNetwork (CIIN) meeting on 20 to 21 February 2012. The meeting was launched with an opening ceremonyat The Core, UBD. Present as the guest of honour for the ceremony was Yang Berhormat Pehin OrangKaya Seri Kerna Dato Seri Setia Dr. Hj Awang Abu Bakar Hj Apong, the Minister of Education.Participating in the two-day meeting were senior academic leaders from some of the world’s foremostuniversities. This year, speakers from the University of Southampton, University of Aberdeen, HongKong University of Science and Technology, Imperial College London, Nanyang Technology UniversitySingapore, University of Melbourne, University of Philippines, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia and UniversitiBrunei Darussalam shared their experience of curricular reform and innovation.UBD Freshers’ Week 2011/2012By Hjh Hanipah Hj ApongUBD Freshers’ Week, held this year from 3 to5 January 2012, is an annual Universiti BruneiDarussalam (UBD) event held one week beforethe start of the new semester and is organised bythe Student Affairs Section (SAS) with support fromthe Students’ Representative Council (SRC) as wellas volunteers. It is dedicated to welcoming allfirst year (Generation NEXT) undergraduate andpostgraduate students from the second 2011/ 2012intake to the UBD community. Through a balancedweek of fun, safe, and informative activities,Freshers’ Week creates a comfortable atmospherein which students can explore the many diverseopportunities that UBD has to offer, meet newfriends and faculty staff, as well as choose the rightcourse to complete their program.The opening ceremony was officiated by theVice Chancellor, Dato Paduka Dr. Hj Zulkarnain HjHanafi, who in his opening address encouragedthe students to take advantage of UBD’s uniquemulti-disciplinary programmes, saying that, “Bychoosing UBD, I assure you that you have made theright choice. With our unique programme, you arenot restricted to modules from one discipline only;rather, we encourage you to take inter-disciplinarymodules so that you will become multi-skilledindividuals.” Additionally, the Dean of Students,Dr. Hj Ramlee Hj Tinkong gave a welcomingspeech to the 45 individuals who are followingthe PhD programme, and another 313 who aretaking Masters programmes. The second intakeof 2011/2012 also includes 120 undergraduates,8 in the graduate diploma programmes, 77 inthe UniBridge programme, and a number ofindividuals in Bridging English Course. One of theundergraduate students, Ak Mohd Ehsanuddin PgHj Malek, led the oath reading during the openingceremony.UBD Library ConductsBriefing and Tour ForGovernment OfficersBy Siti Nor Khairunnisa Hj HassanA campus tour was also organised for the newstudents which involved visits to the UBD ChancellorHall, Lecture Theatre, UBD Campus Library, UBDMosque, UBD Sports Complex and the ResidentialColleges. Among the highlights of Freshers’Week was the Faculties/Institute/Academy gettogether.In this session, students were offered anopportunity to get to know their Deans, DeputyDeans and Assistant Registrars respectively. Thestudents were also introduced to the ProgrammeLeaders and their appointed Academic Advisorsas well as academic staff. UBD Student Conduct(such as dress code, no smoking policy, no crimepolicy as well as health and safety policy) was alsohighlighted during this session.Among the awaited activities for the new studentswas the Sukan Ria, which was held on Thursdayafternoon. The aims of the Sukan Ria were tocreate an active life style amongst the newstudents as well as giving them the chance tointeract with new friends. The sports activities werehandled by the Extra Curricular Activities (ECA) Unitof SAS, SRC members, and with the help of studentvolunteers.Thirty senior officers from the 16th ExecutiveDevelopment Programme for Senior GovernmentOfficers (EDPSGO) attended a library briefingand tour on 24 January 2012. The senior officersrepresented various government departments, whowere participating in the eight-week programmeorganised by the Institute of Leadership, Innovationand Advancement (ILIA), UBD and the PublicService Department (JPA).The Curriculum Innovation International Network was co-founded in January 2011 by the University ofSouthampton and University of Aberdeen with the ambition of bringing together a global network ofuniversities who are engaged in institution-wide curriculum innovation. The purpose of the meeting wasto share and reflect on the experiences with a view to collaboratively seek and share best internationalpractices and the latest thinking in preparing students for the rapidly evolving, unpredictable globalchallenges. The inaugural meeting, which was held in Southampton in January last year was attended byDato Dr. Zulkarnain Hj Hanafi, UBD’s Vice Chancellor, who highlighted the processes of curricular reform atUBD, including the new GenNext undergraduate degree programmes.Over the two-day meeting, many participants expressed their appreciation for the network as a resourceand support in undergoing the upheavals and processes of curriculum reform. The necessity for curriculumreform in response to 21st century challenges proved to be a major impetus for each university. Despiteapproaching reform in a variety of way, similar challenges facing each university were highlighted, as wellas strategies that had been implemented in order to address these challenges.The briefing and tour were overseen by Awang HjAbdullah Hj Tahir, Coordinator of User Services andHead of the Reference and Information Services.At the briefing, UBD’s eClik (Electronic Catalogueof Libraries, Information and Knowledge), wasshowcased.A similar briefing had been held previously, on the20 February, for officers from the 10th ExecutiveDevelopment Programme for Middle ManagementOfficers (EDPMMO).

12DiscoverNEWSDiscoverNEWS13UBD Open Day 2012By Hj Mohammad Ramli Hj Mohd JaafarUniversiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) organised itsannual Open Day from 16 to 18 February 2012 atthe Chancellor Hall, UBD.The UBD Open Day aimed to introduceprospective students to the various undergraduateprogrammes on offer, namely the Bachelor of Arts,Bachelor of Business, Bachelor of Health Scienceand Bachelor of Science. This included informationon the GenNext programme, programmestructures and the different modules on offer.Besides the undergraduate programmes,prospective students were also able to learnabout UBD’s Graduate Programmes, NursingDiplomas, UniBridge and the Bridging EnglishCourse (BEC). In addition, everyone attendingthe Open Day had the opportunity to knowmore about the admission criteria as well as theapplication procedures.The public also had the chance to interact withcurrent UBD students as there were a numberof Student Clubs participating, showcasing theirfunctions and activities as a club and how theyare run. In addition, a live broadcast by UBD FMwas on air for the duration of the event.UBD Participates InHigher EducationExhibitionsBy Hjh Nuairah Afiifah Hj Abdul WahabUniversiti Brunei Darussalam recently promotedits programmes and services at the JerudongInternational School (JIS) Annual Higher EducationEvening for Year 12 Students, as well as theEducation Fair by the Ministry of Education.The JIS event took place on 18 January 2012 at theschool’s Art Centre, while the Education Fair washeld at the International Convention Centre on 18and 19 February 2012.Both exhibitions provided opportunities forprospective students as well as parents to meetUBD representatives to discuss and explore theareas of interest offered by the university. Theexhibitions were timely in that they were held notlong after the release of A-Level results.The response received at both events was positiveand the university looks forward to welcoming thestudents to the university.UBD Welcomes 5th UniBridge IntakeBy Dk Ratna Suriani Pg Hj Osman Photos By Muhd Thaqib Md TuahOn 7 January 2012, UBD opened its door to thefifth intake of the University Bridging (UniBridge)Programme. The event took place at the SenateRoom, Chancellor Hall. Ustaz Hj Mohd FirdausOKK Hj Nordin was invited to bless the event byreciting the Surah Al Fatihah and doa. This wasthen followed by a welcoming speech from theformer Director of the Continuing Education, Dr.Yabit Alas who congratulated the studens forbeing accepted into the UniBridge programme.He also emphasised the value of morality andreminded the students to uphold the tenetsof Melayu Islam Beraja. Additionally, Dr. Yabitencouraged the students to engage activelyin academic discussions with their lecturers andpeers.Dr. Salbrina Sharbawi, the former Programme Leader forUniBridge, kickstarted the briefing session by sharing aninsight into the programme. Also present to brief the studentswere officers from the Examinations Office and the FinanceOffice, who briefed the students on registration, examination,and fees and payment procedures. This was followed bya sharing session conducted by several students from thefourth UniBridge intake who recounted their experiences asstudents in the UniBridge programme.The number of students in the January 2012 intake is 70. Ofthis, 17 are enrolled into the Faculty of Science, 12 into theFaculty of Business, Economic, and Policy Studies, 3 into theAcademy of Brunei Studies, and 38 into the Faculty of Artsand Social Sciences.Before concluding the event, the students were briefed bylibrary personnel on services offered at the UBD library whichwas then followed by a tour of the library.Visit by Professor Pham Ky AnhBy Professor Victor DidenkaFrom 15 to 20 January 2012, Professor Pham Ky Anh, the Headof the Department of Computational andApplied Mathematics at the Hanoi University of Science(HUS) paid a visit to UBD. The visit was organised withinthe framework of the UBD Research Grant “Splineapproximations of boundary integral equationsand applications”. The aim of the visit was to facilitatecollaborative work on the development of numericalmethods for various types of operator equations. ProfessorPham Ky Anh and his group have great experience in thisfield. For six years, Professor Pham Ky Anh was in charge ofthe Centre for High-Performance Computing at HUS, wherevarious approximation methods for linear and non-linearequations have been developed and implemented. Intheir work, they paid special attention to so-called parallelalgorithms which can essentially reduce both computationaltime and overall computational cost. In addition to veryuseful discussions, Professor Pham Ky Anh presented a FOSseminar talk entitled “Novel parallel methods for regularisingill-posed problems”.

14DiscoverNEWSDiscoverNEWS15Yayasan Sabah Group Visits The KualaBelalong Field Studies Centre (Kbfsc)Yayasan Sabah groupmembers at the “EarthWatch” plot of the KBFSC.By Associate Professor Dr. Ulmar GrafeThe Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre (KBFSC)received several senior administrators andresearchers from the Yayasan Sabah Group inFebruary 2012. The aim of the visit was to familiarisethe group with the research and educationalactivities of the KBFSC, and to explore potentialfor future collaborations. During their overnightstay at the KBFSC, the team obtained hands-onexperience in the daily activities of the centre,some of the ongoing research projects and theconduct of the residential education programme.The visitors also went on a field visit to one ofthe KBFSC one-hectare forest dynamics plots toexamine the procedures adopted for field datacollection, as well as to the rain forest canopy walk,which is managed by the Forestry Department.The team expressed their appreciation for theunparalleled services offered by the KBFSC forresearchers, students and academics, and alsothe enormous opportunities available for tropicalbiodiversity research in the pristine Belalong forest.In Search Of Vine Snakes At The Kuala BelalongField Studies Centre By Associate Professor Dr. Ulmar GrafeDr. Silke Schweiger examiningsnakes in UBD’s museum.In January 2012, Dr. Silke Schweiger from the Natural History Museum inVienna, Austria visited the Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre (KBFSC)to study vine snakes. Vine snakes are arboreal colubrid snakes thatoccur throughout the entire Oriental region, ranging from southernChina to India and to the Indo-Australian Archipelago. Despite beingwidespread, the taxonomy and ecology of these snakes are not yet welldocumented.While in Brunei, Dr. Schweiger also examined preserved specimensstored in UBD’s museum that is housed in the Faculty of Science. Themuseum is rapidly expanding its collection and proudly houses severalspecimens. Such specimens are of great significance to biologists,especially taxonomists, as the scientific name of an organism is formallyattached to them. During her visit to the museum, Dr. Schweigerrecorded 23 vine snake characters, including their colour pattern(2 characters), body proportions (6 characters) and scalation (15characters).Library Welcomes NewIntake Of 2012/2013By Siti Nor Khairunnisa Hj HassanAs part of their welcome to Universiti BruneiDarussalam (UBD), new UniBridge, undergraduateand postgraduate students for 2012/2013 wereprovided with an orientation tour and briefing ofthe university’s library. This was overseen by AwangHj Mohd Yussop POKIDDP Hj Awang Musa, theAssistant Chief Librarian, Awang Hj Abdullah HjTahir, the coordinator of the User Services, and HjhDayang Anis Farhana Hj Awang Damit, Head ofLending Services Desk. As part of the orientation,students were briefed on the services, facilities,and collections available.Universiti Brunei Darussalam Links WithUniversity Of California, San Diego ForAnthropology And Biodiversity StudiesBy Dr. Leong Vai ShemOn 22 November 2011, Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) inked two Memorandum of Understandings(MOUs) with the University of California, San Diego (UCSD). The MOUs were signed by Dato Paduka Dr. HjZulkarnain Hj Hanafi, the Vice Chancellor of UBD, and Professor Sandra A. Brown, Vice Chancellor, Officeof Research Affairs of UCSD, at San Diego, United States of America. Present to witness the auspiciousevent were Dr. Anita Aziz, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Education and Internationalisation and ProfessorTong Chee Kiong, Special Academic Advisor, of UBD.The agreements outlined a framework for cooperation in fundamental research and higher educationof mutual interest to both institutions. This includes scholarly visits of students, postdoctoral fellows andacademics as well as joint research projects and publications, and exchanges of publications, materialsand information, in two separate areas of studies: anthropology and biodiversity. With renowned expertsin the disciplines of anthropology and biodiversity, both higher education institutions have collaborationsin research projects and scholarly exchanges. In biodiversity, research dialogues have started in thestudies of environment, climate change and food security, notably in agricultural produce. UCSD’s ViceChancellor for Research, Professor Sandra Brown, remarked that “I am positive that as both universitiescontinue to review and prioritise areas of strengths to move forward, opportunities in education, studentand faculty visits will continue to develop for future collaborations”.UCSD was established in 1960 as a public research university, and today has approximately 30,000enrolled students with more than 1,200 faculty members, including six Nobel Laureates, four MacArthurfellows, three National Medal of Science laureates and two Fields Medallists. As a comprehensiveuniversity, programmes ranging from medicine to biochemistry, to business to engineering andoceanography are on offer. The international ranking of universities, under the Times Higher EducationWorld University Rankings 2010-2011, placed UCSD as the 24th best university in the United States based ona rigorous set of criteria: teaching, research, citations, international mix and industry income. Meanwhile,the 2012 U.S. News & World Report College ranked UCSD’s undergraduate program as the 8th best publicuniversity in the United States.12th Meeting Of The Asean Graduate BusinessAnd Economics Programme (AGBEP)By Dr. Mahani HamdanThis year, the AGBEP was hosted by ChulalongkornUniversity and Burapha University Thailand. BothDean (Dr. Hazri Kifle) and Deputy Dean (Dr.Gamini Premaratne) of the Faculty of Business,Economics and Policy Studies (FBEPS) attendedthe meeting. The theme of this 12th meeting was“Toward ASEAN Economics Community (AEC)and Beyond: Challenges and Opportunities”, andwas held jointly from the 18-20 January 2012 atChulalongkorn University, Bangkok and at BuraphaUniversity, Chonburi.The meeting was well attended by its members,which include the National University of Singapore(NUS), Chulalongkorn University (CU), BuraphaUniversity (BU), University of Philippine (UP), Universityof Gajah Mada (UGM), University Sains Malaysia(USM), De La Salle University (DLSU) and the ASEANUniversity Network (AUN) Secretariat.The keynote speech was delivered by Mr. Abhisit Vijjajiva, the former Prime Minister of Thailand. AssociateProfessor Pasu Decharin, Dean of the Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy at CU and AssistantProfessor Patchanee Nontasak, Dean of the Faculty of Management and Tourism, Burapha Universitygave the welcome remarks at the opening of the meeting.Many important concerns were addressed in the meeting including the creation of an ASEAN-ChinaBusiness School Network (ASEAN-China Bis-Net) under AGBEP. UBD’s FBEPS also proposes to hold the firstFBEPS-AGBEP PhD Colloquium which aims to promote interaction between graduate students, academicsand experts from AGBEP members and other top-universities in the region in June 2012.

16DiscoverNEWSDiscoverNEWS17UBD Library OrganisesBook and IT FairBy Siti Nor Khairunnisa Hj HassanProfile:Professor David KohMinistry of Defence Signs MoU With UBDBy Normasitirena SuhainiUBD signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) concerning cooperation and student internshipswith the Ministry of Defence on 31 January 2012.The MoU was signed by the Permanent Secretary (Defence Policy and Development), Ministry ofDefence, Hj Awang Saifulbahri Hj Awang Mansor, Acting Director of Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Instituteof Defence and Strategic Studies (SHHBIDSS), Muhammad Shahrul Nizzam Umar representing MINDEF, andUBD’s Vice Chancellor, Dato Paduka Dr. Hj Zulkarnain Hj Hanafi.Over the years, MINDEF and the Royal Brunei Armed Forces (RBAF) have provided attachments fortechnical and vocational students from various educational institutions. The MoU will provide a morestructured and efficient approach of managing the placement of these students in UBD so that thedesired objectives of these attachments can be attained.The overall objective of the MoU is to promote cooperation through the provision of student attachmentsat MINDEF and RBAF for UBD students, in support of the national human resources development policies.Through this collaboration, the Ministry of Defence shall provide the students with opportunities to applytheir technical and vocational skills through a structured working experience, and at the same timestimulate their interests and awareness in defence science and technology, and security and defencemanagementmatters.The MoU will also provide the students with a programme of structured work experience, opportunities toobserve first hand applications of technical skills, and a real work-based environment to enhance theirlearning.The MoU also promotes closer collaborations on research and development as well as exchange ofknowledge in areas of mutual interest between the parties.In addition, it enables the parties to participatein the human resource development of Brunei’s youth.The MoU will serve as a reference on thecollaboration terms for undergraduate internship supervision under the function of UBD’s Discovery Year.The targeted total number of students to undergo attachment annually for UBD is 47, but this number maybe reviewed from time to time to suit existing commitments or demands.The opening ceremony of the book and IT Fairorganised by Universiti Brunei Darussalam’s (UBD)Library in January was officiated by Hjh AnisFaudzulani Hj Dzulkiflee, Assistant Vice Chancellor(Corporate and Administration). During herspeech, the Assistant Vice Chancellor stressedthe importance of obtaining the latest and mostrelevant academic publications for academicsand undergraduates in order to increase thequality of teaching and research. She also stressedthe role of the UBD Library in helping UBD toachieve a top 50 Asian ranking by 2015.Hj Awang Mohd Yussop POKIDDP Hj Awang Musa,Assistant Chief Librarian, stated that the objectiveof the Fair was to showcase available readingmaterial and products, as well as the most upto-datetechnology and gadgets and provideopportunities for book suppliers and publishers toconverge with the needs of the reading public.The Fair also functioned as a platform for thepublication of local books.A total of 27 exhibitors participated, including localand international booksellers and IT companieswho showcased newly published books, and thelatest IT gadgetry The five-day exhibition also madeavailable activities such as sponsored quizzes andgames for primary, secondary school students andUBD students.David Koh MBBS, MSc, PhD, FFOM, FFOMI, FFPHProfessor and Chair of Occupational Health andMedicine, PAP Rashidah Sa’adatul Bolkiah Institute ofHealth Sciences, Universiti Brunei DarussalamProfessor David Koh is the new Chair of OccupationalHealth and Medicine in PAP Rashidah Sa’adatul BolkiahInstitute of Health Sciences, Universiti Brunei Darussalam(UBD). Professor Koh is an occupational physician bytraining, who qualified in medicine in Singapore, andcompleted his postgraduate training in Singapore andthe United Kingdom.Prior to joining UBD in 2012, he worked full time atNational University of Singapore (NUS) from 1985.He was the previous Head of the Department ofCommunity, Occupational and Family Medicineand Director of the Centre for Environmental andOccupational Health Research. His appointmentsprior to joining the NUS were Assistant Director inthe Division of Occupational Safety and Health,National Productivity Board, and Medical Director in amultinational insurance company.Professor Koh has been appointed as Visiting Professor,Adviser and/or Examiner to universities in the USA,Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand, and Malaysia. Hehas been engaged by the World Health Organisationas a consultant in occupational and environmentalhealth to countries such as Vietnam, Indonesia andthe Solomon Islands, and undertaken internationalconsulting work with large organisations andmultinational companies in the Asia-Pacific Region.His research and teaching interests are in occupationaland environmental health. He has over 250 peerreviewed publications and had edited several books,including the Textbook of Occupational MedicinePractice, which is now in its third edition. He alsoserves on the advisory and editorial boards of majorinternational occupational and environmental healthjournals.Professor Koh has received international recognition forhis academic work, including the Smiley medal fromthe Faculty of Occupational Medicine, Ireland, theWilf Howe Prize from the Faculty of Medicine, UK, andthe William J Gies award from the Journal of DentalResearch, USA.discoverubd is pleased to welcome Professor Koh to UBD.

18DiscoverNEWSDiscoverNEWS19Four Universities In TheUSA Host UBD VisitingScholarBy Dr. Rahayu SukriIn keeping with UBD’s mobility andinternationalisation efforts for staff, Dr.Rahayu Sukri from the Biology Programme,Faculty of Science, undertook a threeweektrip to the United States of Americain February 2012 as an official VisitingScholar. Four American institutionsgraciously hosted the visit: the New YorkBotanical Garden, the Peabody Museumat Yale University, Old Dominion Universityand Princeton University.The visit started at the New York Botanical Garden(NYBG) with intensive training on structural botany,tropical plant identification and plant genomicsat the Pfizer Plant Research Laboratory, the SteereHerbarium and the NYBG Plant Conservatory,which is widely recognised for its diverse collectionof plants from various ecosystems ranging fromalpine to desert plants, aquatics to tropical rainforest trees. At the Yale Peabody Museum, handsontraining focused on herbarium techniques,digital imaging of plant specimens and abioinformatics introductory course. The visit alsoincluded a tour of the Peabody Museum, oneof the oldest and largest university natural historymuseums in the world.At Old Dominion University (ODU), Dr. Rahayuparticipated in an undergraduate field botanyclass and a field visit to the Blackwater EcologicalPreserve, a natural area preserve run by ODU toconserve two of the rarest plant communities inVirginia, the longleaf pine-turkey oak flatwoods andthe longleaf pine savannas. As part of the visit, Dr.Rahayu gave a lecture to the ODU Plant ResearchGroup, highlighting Brunei’s commitment to forestconservation and UBD’s own exceptional strengthin biodiversity research.The visit concluded at Princeton University, whereDr. Rahayu met with senior faculty members,postdoctoral researchers and graduate studentsfrom the Department of Ecology and EvolutionaryBiology to discuss possible avenues for staff andstudent exchanges, and collaborative researchwith academics at UBD.2nd ASEAN-Korea Frontier ForumOn 22 September 2011, the Asia Exchange Association (AEA) welcomed three UBDstudents to a week-long Korea-ASEAN corporation project titled the ASEAN-KoreaFrontier Forum. The students were Javon Leong (4th year majoring in Public Policy andAdministration), Amy Mohidin and Jessie Yong (3rd and 2nd year majoring in BusinessAdministration, respectively).Public Lecture On The Trapping Strategies OfCarnivorous Pitcher PlantsBy Associate Professor Dr. Ulmar GrafeOn 7 March 2012, the Faculty of Science hosted apublic lecture entitled “Of water flumes, waxy wallsand toilet bowls: trapping strategies of carnivorouspitcher plants”. The talk was given by Dr. UlrikeBauer, Henslow Research Fellow of the CambridgePhilosophical Society, University of Cambridge andResearch Associate of UBD.In her fascinating and enthusiastic presentation, Dr.Bauer showcased how pitcher plants trap insects, aresearch endeavour that has brought her to Bruneiregularly over the last seven years. She highlightedthat pitcher plants supplement their nutrition withanimal prey that they capture in highly elaboratetraps. The ability to use this additional nutrientsource enables them to colonise extreme habitatswhere soil nutrients are scarce. It is likely that theyare key players in nutrient cycling in peatswampand kerangas forests.Dr. Bauer provided evidence that distinct varietiesand species rely on different trap componentsand have evolved specific trap adaptations totarget different prey. Most surprisingly, some specieshave even abandoned carnivory and evolved amutualistic relationship with tree shrews that deposittheir faeces in the pitchers. Pitcher plants aretherefore seen as an ideal model system to studymechanisms of plant evolution.UBD Welcomes Students FromYala Islamic UniversityBy Zufri Hj HassanIn January 2012, Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD)welcomed 15 students from Yala Islamic University (YIU)of Southern Thailand, for a 3-month intensive Englishcourse. The course facilitates cultural immersion as well aslanguage acquisition. UBD’s Sawadee Club were on handalongside staff to greet the students when they arrived.The ASEAN-Korea Frontier Forum (AKFF) is intended to bring the next generation of young leadersof ASEAN and the Republic of Korea (ROK) to discuss the role of youth in strengthening ASEAN-ROKrelations in the field of business, environment, tourism, and culture. The students had the opportunity toexchange constructive views and present their findings through a competition, coming up with a set ofrecommendations that will be presented to the ASEAN-Korea Senior Official Meetings and other relevantASEAN bodies.To give a brief overview of the project, the students started their first expedition tour to Seoul OlympicMuseum where they were enlightened on the Olympic sports and their history. On the morning of thesecond day, they attended the opening ceremony of the 2nd AKF, followed by lectures from Mr. Byungkukand Professor Cha Young-cheol.On the sixth day of the forum, the students gave their presentation regarding the conservation ofbiological diversity and natural heritage.On the following day, the students had the opportunity to experience Korean culture by visiting theGyeongbokgung Palace and the Seoul Museum of Art where they were exposed to the traditional artsand culture of Korea.Most memorably, the students spent their week in Korea enlightening and educating the other ASEANdelegates regarding Brunei Darussalam, and they expanded their networks throughout ASEAN by workingtogether in the forum.Site visits are one of the essential components of UBD’sGlobal Discovery Programme (GDP) under whoseaegis the YIU students arrived. In February 2012, thestudents were taken on an educational visit to InstituteTahfiz Al-Quran Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah (ITSHHB).Accompanying them were 3 UBD academic staffmembers; the Coordinator of the GDP, Zufri Hassan,Badriyah Yusof, and Dk Rosinah.ITSHHB is an Islamic institute where, aside from learningacademic subjects, students also learn the properrecitation and memorisation of the Quran. Welcoming theUBD-YIU entourage were Ustaz Mat Shah, the PR Officerfor ITSHHB, and Ustaz Hamzah. The group was taken on atour of the institute, and had a look at the facilities andamenities available over there. The visit culminated witha briefing by Ustaz Mat Shah on ITSHHB, during whichhe gave an overview of the institute’s history, as well asprovided some information on the current standings ofthe institute. ITSHHB has produced students who are notonly well-versed in the Quran, but are also high academicachievers who have gone on to pursue their education touniversities in Jordan, Egypt, as well as the UK.

20DiscoverNEWSDiscoverNEWS21Professional Development Workshop forTeachers and Students on Gifted EnrichmentBy Associate Professor Dr. Koay Teng LeongA professional development workshop for teachers and students was jointly organised by UBD’s SultanHassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education (SHBIE) and the Special Education Unit, Ministry of Education, BruneiDarussalam. The workshop, held on 3 March 2012 at UBD, was attended by 220 teachers and studentsfrom both government and non-government schools.The workshop focused on enrichment for gifted students and showcased the results of some of theopportunities that have been offered to gifted students in Brunei. Two students from Sekolah RendahPengiran Kesuma Negara, Bukit Beruang, Dayang Izzatur Rahimah Sofferi and Dayang Nur SyarfaSyazwina Ahmad Yani shared the outcomes of their research project on paper recycling. Two otherstudents, Dayang Nur Syahira Edora’ Ainee Mohd Noh and Dayang Rabiatul Adawiyah @ NurinMohammad from Sekolah Menengah Menglait, described their school newsletter project.As part of the enrichment programme, UBD’s Associate Professor Dr. Koay Teng Leong provided sometips on planning, writing and presenting a research report for gifted students. Also giving a presentationwas Ms. Helga Kumuntoy, a Committee Member of the 12th Asia Pacific Conference, who explained thenecessity for gifted enrichment activities. The workshop closed with students’ and teachers’ reflections ofvarious international gifted programmes abroad which they had attended.Ongoing Faculty Research Seminar SeriesBy Dr. Mahani HamdanThe Faculty of Business Economicsand Policy Studies (FBEPS) hasintroduced a series of seminarsconducted by both academicstaff and research students. Theseseminars have been well-attendedby staff and students, and kickedoff with Associate Professor Dr.Petr Polak’s presentation onthe “Centralisation of TreasuryManagement in MultinationalCompanies and the Role of RegionalTreasury Centres”.He was followed by Ang Sik Long and Associate Professor Patrick Low, who presented their paper on“Positive Thinking and Confucian Leadership”. Continuing on in the same vein, Dr. Hjh Sainah Hj Saimpresented a paper entitled “Employee Satisfaction in the Brunei Public Sector”, which aimed to establishnational levels of employee satisfaction and the contributing factors, focusing particularly on BruneiDarussalam’s public service.The various issues of employment were picked up in February by Dr. Saad Al-Harran, who attempted toaddress the unemployment problem of the Arab youth and the problems that it creates and causes,in a paper entitled “Is there an innovative way out? An Islamic Perspective.” This international focuswas carried on by B.W.R. Damayanthi, who exposited on “The role of microfinance in reducing urbanpoverty in Sri Lanka.”The seminars continued with papers ranging from the implications of mobile phone use among Bruneiteenagers (Annie Dayani Ahad), to policy disintegration in Indonesia (Meita Ahadiyati K) , to MalaysianCash Awqaf Institutions (Hisham Yaacob) to Ghanaian bill payment behaviour (Mohammed AminuSualihu).Comments and evaluation in the Q and A session allocated at end of each presentation werebeneficial for both academic staff and research students. This weekly event has helped to enhanceand expand knowledge, increase understanding of each other’s research areas, and establish networksamong staff and students to develop collaboration and strengthen the strategic focus of the Faculty’sresearch activities.Community OutreachProgramme inSouthern ThailandThe following is a short interview withMohammad Hassanal SirazroynieHarriesthfaredilleah who shares withus his experience of the CommunityOutreach Programme.Could you share with us your Discovery YearCould you share with us your DiscoveryYear experience so far?I decided to do the Community OutreachProgramme (COP) for my Discovery Yearin Southern Thailand. The COP is one of theprogrammes offered to Discovery Year studentsin UBD. The focus of the COP is essentially to helppeople and families in unfortunate communities.We want to create solutions with a positiveimpact, solutions that can meet timelines andcurrent needs, particularly in education. So weare assigned to schools and high institutions toteach and I have chosen to go to a forgottencommunity in Pattani, Southern Thailand.Essentially, the main concern of this venture isto bring Universiti Brunei Darussalam and YalaIslamic University in Southern Thailand together, todevelop friendly relations between two countriesand to be a centre for helping other nations.What has impressed you, and what hasbeen your best experience?I am pretty much impressed by the fact thesepeople can live and appreciate what they have.Even though they don’t have as much stuff aswe do such as the luxuries of credit cards, thisprogramme has made me more aware of mysituation as it has taught me to be more humbleand mature and appreciate what I have. I havelearned a lot of life lessons including how to bemore patient. It has been an honour to activelyengage in the COP. I have been always keenon doing the COP. Certainly being away from all‘luxuries’, personal automobile and air-conditionerhave made me a more appreciative person. Theprogramme has guided me so much so far, so I amthankful to Allah. InsyaAllah, together, we will try toensure the community is going to be transformedfrom a distressed community into a vibrant one.The COP aims to bring positive changes to alllevels—not just their education systems but theirunjust living conditions that often goes unnoticed.Do you have any tips for the secondbatch of Discovery Year students?I would tell them to join the Community OutreachProgramme. It is life -changing and beyond theirimagination. It is also a humbling experience,and while being away from life’s luxuries may bechallenging at first, as soon as you get there youwill know what struggle really means.

22DiscoverNEWSDiscoverNEWS23UBD Final YearNursing StudentsOff to OBBD ForManagementProgrammeBy Deeni Rudita IdrisTwenty eight students from the Diplomain Health Sciences (Nursing) Cohort 1went to Outward Bound, Temburong onthe 19 March 2012 for 2 days to undergoteam building activities as part of theirmanagement programme. This was partof a larger pedagogical strategy on thepart of the Leadership and Managementacademics to introduce elements of themodule outside of the regular classroomteaching.Some of the objectives for the programmeincluded enabling the students to apply theconcepts of problem solving, team working,brainstorming, conflict and conflict management,time management, delegation, and decisionmaking in leadership and management.Awang Deeni Rudita Idris, a lecturer from theinstitute, and coordinator of the programmesaid that educationists believe that all thesemanagement skills can be honed throughimplementation of theory to practice. Thus, allthese objectives were incorporated into thevarious tasks that were given for the students tosolve during the 2 day program.The feedback from the students regarding thecourse was uniformly excellent. Most students saidthat the programme was challenging but also a funway to learn and practice their management skills.The students on the programme were joined byparamedic and midwifery students from Cohort 1.

24DiscoverNEWSDiscoverNEWS25Three UBD Students Share Their Experiences StudyingAt King’s College London Under The Study AbroadProgrammeMichelle Lim Yee PheiStudying abroad at King’s College London hasbeen my first experience outside of Brunei. I wasnever onboard a plane before I went to King’s.Before leaving for London, I felt a mixture ofnervousness, excitement and sadness. The firstthing I noticed upon reaching London was thecool weather and the huge numbers of peoplewalking at a fast pace, indicating that London isindeed a busy city.One of the few issues that I have had to strugglewith while studying abroad is the feeling ofhomesickness and missing the familiarity thatsurrounds me back in Brunei, especially during thefirst few months of settling in. For those who lovethe busy city atmosphere, studying at King’s wouldbe a suitable choice. King’s is located in the cityof London itself. Transportation and almost everyother service in London is very efficient.The studying environment and system at King’s isdifferent to UBD;s and thus it has taken some timeto get used to the transition. I find that at King’s Ihave to discipline myself to do independent studyas the module timetable is not as highly structuredas it is in UBD. King’s also expects a lot of criticalthinking and analysis in terms of our assignments.One memorable moment occurred when, in oneof my modules concerning tropical rainforests,Brunei was one of the objects of study, makingme feel quite proud of being a Bruneian as we stillhave a lot of intact rainforest. Approaches to thetopic and perspectives were mostly from the Britishpoint of view. The lecturers have been quite kindand helpful in assisting me if I have any doubtsor problems in any of my modules. I can say thatduring the duration of my study period here, I havegained quite a number of skills such as thinkingmore critically.Studying abroad has increased myindependence, expanded my intellectual horizonsand helped me to view things in a different way. Ican say that my period of study in King’s collegehas been valuable and also fulfilling in terms of mypersonal and intellectual growth.Nadiah YasinKing’s College London is one of the mostprestigious universities in the UK and being able todo my Study Abroad Programme here has beentruly an exciting and challenging experience.King’s campus is very different from UBD’s - simplyspeaking, King’s does not have a campusenvironmentas it is situated in the city. Shops andoffice buildings are our neighbours here. It took mea while to adapt to the busy, crowded and fastmovingenvironment in London.Studying at King’s is really challenging – especiallykeeping up with their academic pace! However,King’s provides a lot of useful facilities and hasaccess to a lot of academic journals, makingit easier for us to get articles to help us with ouressays as well as presentations. I am also trying toslowly instil in myself the culture of reading not onlyfor the sake of getting my assignments done butalso to appreciate the knowledge I am gettingout of it. The hospitality I am receiving at King’s hashelped me a lot - the key is to always ask when indoubt instead of making assumptions and simplykeeping things to myself.I can’t wait to be back at UBD and share theexperiences and skills that I am getting here.Siti Nur Aisyah HamdanI am taking environmental studies in UBD,but in King’s I take geography, where mymodules include both human and physicalgeography. King’s College London is one ofthe top universities in the UK, so I feel gratefulto be an exchange student here. There are alot of differences between the way we study atKing’s and the way we study at UBD. It has beenchallenging for me but fortunately it has reallyhelped me to become more independent, andpushed me to think outside of the box.Since I am taking environmental studies at UBD,the workload, which consists mostly of essaywriting, is something I am familiar with. Thedifference is that back in Brunei, we get morepoints based on if we have more information andthe way we structure our essays. In the UK, themore you can criticise and analyse, the higherthe marks you will get. Since I was not familiar withhow to write an essay based on an argument, ithas been quite challenging for me, but then I tooka module on critical thinking which really helpedme in writing essays.At King’s, it is easy for us to source information as we have easy access to e-journals and e-books. Withmy fellow Bruneians, I gave a presentation to our coursemates on the differences in developmentbetween Southeast Asia and Western Europe. Unfortunately, we could only use case studies aboutother countries in Southeast Asia because it was hard for us to look into Brunei, due to the lack ofavailable data.The lecturers and staff have been very helpful; in November we were invited to meet with the principalof the School of Medicine, which was an honour as a Bruneian student at King’s. We had an enjoyablebreakfast and talk.Another event that stands out was a talk on biodiversity in Brunei, where there were presentations onBrunei’s tropical rainforest and the collaboration between iCUBE and UBD. The presenters encouragedtheir Masters and PhD students to pursue their studies at UBD and to conduct their research on Brunei’stropical rainforest.Although the experience at King’s has brought its share of challenges, it has also been a great pleasure,as it has taught me to become more independent and confident. Also, it has encouraged me to notonly focus on my area of discipline but to learn new things in other areas of study. As we have metdifferent people from different countries, we were able to gain more knowledge and expand ourhorizons. Studying abroad at King’s has been a really great experience that I will never forget.

26New Appointments for 2012FACULTY OF BUSINESS,ECONOMICS, ANDPOLICY STUDIESDEANDr. Hazri Hj KifleDEPUTY DEAN (ACADEMIC)Dr. Hetti ArachchigeGamini PremaratneDEPUTY DEAN (GRADUATESTUDIES AND RESEARCH)Dr. Muhammad Nabil Al-MunawarPROGRAMME LEADERSGraduate StudiesDr. Ali Yusob Mohd ZainBusiness AdministrationDr. Leong Vai ShiemEconomicsRosnah OpaiAccounting & FinanceAssociate Professor Dr. PetrPolakFACULTY OF ARTS ANDSOCIAL SCIENCESDEANDr. Yabit AlasDEPUTY DEAN (ACADEMIC)Associate Professor Dr. IikAriffin MansurnoorDEPUTY DEAN (GRADUATESTUDIES AND RESEARCH)Dr. Alistair WoodPROGRAMME LEADERSSociology/ AnthropologyAssociate Professor Dr. HjHasmadi Awg MoisProfessional Communication& the MediaMr Alex HenryGeography & Development/ Environmental StudiesDr. Jose Edgardo L. AbanHistorical StudiesDr. Rommel A CuramingMalay Languages &LinguisticsDr. Hj Azmi AbdullahMalay LiteratureAssociate ProfessorDr. Noriah TaslimEnglish Language StudiesDr. Sharifah Nurul Huda SyedHussein Al-KaffArt & Creative TechnologyDr. Shui Kong HoDiscovery YearPg Dr. Mohamed Pg HjDamitFACULTY OF SCIENCEDEANProfessor Dato Dr.Mohamad Hj Abdul MajidDEPUTY DEAN (ACADEMIC)Pg Dr. Iskandar Pg Hj PetraDEPUTY DEAN (RESEARCH)Dr. Jose H. SantosPROGRAMME LEADERSBiological SciencesDr. Norhayati AhmadChemistryDr. Chan Chin MeiMathematicsDr. Malcolm AndersonApplied PhysicsDr. Martin Geoffrey BlundellComputer ScienceChong Kim OnnGeology and PetroleumGeologyDr. William DowneySULTAN HASSANAL BOLKIAHINSTITUTE OF EDUCATIONDEANDr. Hjh Romaizah Hj MohdSallehDEPUTY DEAN (ACADEMIC)Professor Dr. Keith RobertJohn WoodDEPUTY DEAN (RESEARCH)Associate Professor Dr.Saratha SithamparamDEPUTY DEAN(ADMINISTRATION)Dr. Jainatul Halida JaidinPROGRAMME LEADERSInitial Teacher PreparationDr. Masitah SharilGraduate ProfessionalDevelopmentDr. Hjh Jamilah Hj MohdYussofContinuing ProfessionalDevelopmentDr. Hjh Rosmawijah HjJawawiSchool PartnershipDr. Sallimah Hj Mohd SallehResearchDr. Josage Sudharman H.Quintus PereraPAPRSB INSTITUTE OFHEALTH SCIENCEDEANDr. Hjh Maslina Hj MohsinDEPUTY DEAN (ACADEMIC,RESEARCH ANDINTERNATIONALISATION)Dr. Ayub SadiqDEPUTY DEAN(ADMINISTRATION)Awg Ahmad Faisal HjZainal AbidinPROGRAMME LEADERSGraduate and ResearchDr. Hjh Mas Rina Wati HjAbdul HamidMedicineDr. Tayyab HassanBiomedical SciencesDr. Ampuan Hj Mohd AsrinAmpuan Hj TengahNursing & MidwiferyDr. Irmawati Hj AhmadACADEMY OF BRUNEI STUDIESDIRECTORAssociate ProfessorAmpuan Dr. Hj BrahimAmpuan Hj TengahDEPUTY DIRECTORAwg Mohd Shahrol AmiraAbdullahPROGRAMME LEADERSBrunei StudiesAwg Hj Tassim Hj Abu BakarGraduate StudiesDr. Stephen Charles DruceLANGUAGE CENTREDIRECTORDr. Hj Noor Azam OKMB HjOthmanDEPUTY DIRECTORAwg Saidai Hj HitamPROGRAMME LEADERSEnglish Language adCommunication SkillsHjh Suciyati Hj SulaimanBorneo and InternationalLanguagesDr. Kim Ji YeonSULTAN OMAR ALISAIFUDDIEN CENTRE FORISLAMIC STUDIESINTERIM DIRECTORAssociate Professor Dr.Azman AhmadINSTITUTE FOR ASIAN STUDIESINTERIM DIRECTORGRADUATE STUDIES ANDRESEARCHDEANDr. Zaw WintDEPUTY DEANAssociate Professor Dr.David James YoungUBD I IBM CENTREDEPUTY DIRECTORDr. Saiful Azmi Hj AwgHussainE- GOVERNMENTINNOVATION CENTREDEPUTY DIRECTORDr. Hjh Syamimi Hj MohdAarif LimKUALA BELALONG FIELDSTUDIES CENTREDIRECTORDr. Kushan TennakoonSTUDENT AFFAIRSDEANDr. Hj Ramlee Hj TingkongDEPUTY DEANSendi BatuINTERNATIONAL AND PUBLICRELATIONS OFFICEDIRECTORDr. Teo Siew YeanDEPUTY DIRECTORDr. Abby TanINFORMATION,COMMUNICATION,TECHNOLOGY CENTREDIRECTORLim Sei GuanTEACHING AND LEARNINGCENTREINTERIM HEADDr. Hjh Anita Binurul ZahrinaPOKLWDSS Hj Awg AbdulAzizCONTINUING EDUCATIONCENTREDIRECTORDr. Salbrina Hj SharbawiPROGRAMME LEADERSUniBridgeDk Ratna Suriani Pg HjOsmanDiscoverRESEARCHDiscoverNEWSUBD Joins LEAP21 In ResearchingPedagogies For 21st Century SkillsDr. Linda Shears from SRI International was invited toUniversiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) from 5-10 March2012 to conduct a LEAP21 facilitator’s workshop for agroup of UBD lecturers and MOE officers.LEAP21 is an acronym for Learning Educators, AdvancingPedagogies for the 21st Century. It is a programme thatleverages the research-based tools developed in Phase I of theInnovative Teaching and Learning (ITL) research for the analysisof Learning Activities and Student Work (LASW).ITL Research is a multi-year global research programme devotedto researching and supporting the evolution of innovativeteaching practices in a variety of country contexts. In Phase I ofthis research programme (2009-11), researchers in 7 countries(Finland, Russia, Senegal, Australia, England and Mexico)used a mixed-methods design to investigate the practices ofinnovative teaching in each country, its relationship to students’development of 21st century skills, and the factors that supportteacher adoption of new teaching methods.By Chin Wei KehLEAP21 will be initiated in at least six countries - Senegal, Finland, Russia, Australia, Mexico and England - in2012, including workshops to introduce the process to teachers and coaching to begin building it into thelife and culture of the schools. Brunei has joined LEAP21 as a participating country, with UBD as a researchpartner.The objective of LEAP21 is to help teachers design learning experiences that deepen students’development of 21st century skills. It brings together groups of teachers and offers a detailed set ofdefinitions, rubrics and a process that will act as a lens for the collaborative analysis of 21st centurylearning opportunities. LEAP21 is designed to provide teachers with an environment that supports theadoption of more innovative teaching practices.Following the facilitator’s workshop in March, a series of workshops will be conducted by local facilitatorsthat introduce school teachers to the LASW method and its application, followed by two-day follow-upvisits to schools to embed the method into school-based practices.27Professor Tong Chee Kiong

28DiscoverRESEARCHDiscoverNEWSDiscoverRESEARCH29Introductory Seminar on the New Patent SystemBy Haneen Ishaq1 January 2012 did not only signify the beginning of the New Year, but made its mark in Brunei’s historyas the day the new patent system was established. This is just one of the steps forward Brunei is makingtowards achieving its goal of further economic development and increased innovation. It is a conceptwholeheartedly embraced by Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) with its myriad of research activities thatbenefit the national economy.The seminar, held on 25 January 2012 at the Chancellor Hall, UBD, was led by the Deputy Registrar of thePatent Registry Office (PRO), Shahrinah Yusof Khan. Present at the event were UBD’s researchers and staff.She gave a brief introduction into Brunei’s new patent system and explained that the system is basedon Singapore’s system in that patent examination is done by overseas Examining Offices such as theAustrian and Denmark Patent Offices. In addition, not only does PRO accept, process and register patentapplications, it also works to promote and propagate Intellectual Property (IP).Also a speaker at the event was Mr. Lutz Mailänder, who works at the World Intellectual PropertyOrganisation (WIPO) as a head of the Patent Information Section. As such he is in charge of WIPO’sInternational Cooperation for Examination (ICE) service which provides support for substantiveexamination to IPOs in developing countries, and of WIPO’s Patent Information Service for developingcountries (WPIS) which provides state of the art search reports to institutions and the private sector ofdeveloping countries, NGOs and IGOs.He described the idea of patent as balancing two different interests; for the inventor to protect theirideas, and disclosure of information which will provide society access to these innovative ideas. “Patentinformation is a huge resource,” Mr. Lutz said.Participants Claas Damken(New Zealand) and Lee JoKien (Malaysia).However, he claims that “95% of patents are irrelevant for marketing and commercialising a product”.Expectations on deriving income from out licensing are too high. Instead, patents can be used to increaseyour portfolio. Its can help the inventor or IP owner to develop visibility, and supports funding requests byshowing you have obtained the rights to your invention or intellectual property.iCUBE Workshop Sets Agendaon Climate Change ResearchFrom 9 to 19 January 2012, Universiti BruneiDarussalam organised and hosted an internationalclimate change workshop. With the title ‘Impact ofclimate change and innovations for a sustainablefuture’, graduate students and experts from theInternational Consortium of Universities for the Studyof Biodiversity and the Environment (iCUBE) metto discuss, promote awareness, and offer solutionsto global climate change and its impact on theenvironment. Participants came from the Universityof Bonn, the National University of Singapore,the University of Auckland, the University of NorthCarolina, Monash University, King’s College London,and Korea University.By Associate Professor Dr. Ulmar GrafeParticipants being briefedat the Kuala Belalong FieldStudies CentreSome of the topics discussed included carbonexchange and forest dynamics of tropical peatforests, how to model forest water, carbon andnutrient cycling in complex terrain, the currentstatus of Brunei’s forests, carbon sequestration andapplication of stable carbon isotopes, the impact of climate change on coastal environments, and how to usegeographic information systems to set priorities in protecting biodiversity.Several field trips were conducted to allow participants to gain hands-on experience in climate changeresearch. At the Kuala Belalong Field Studies Centre, Dr. Rahayu Sukri introduced participants to the lowlandmixed-dipterocarp rainforest and the 25 hectare plot of the Global Earth Observatory Project, a researchinitiative to monitor the response of biodiversity to global climate change. Another field trip to the Brunei Baywas led by Dr. David Marshall who demonstrated the impact of ocean acidification on marine life. Dr. KamariahAbu Salim introduced participants to the unique mangrove forests at Pulau Selirong. Finally, Dr. Ulmar Grafe andDr. Ruth Rawcliffe took participants to the Belait district to highlight the need to protect tropical peat forestswhich function as a sink for greenhouse gases.At the closing ceremony, the Assistant Vice Chancellor and champion of the iCUBE workshop, Dr. AzmanAhmad encouraged workshop participants to return to Brunei to conduct further research in the area ofclimate change as it poses a serious threat to biodiversity as well as the economic and social fabric of humansocieties around the world.Patent protection is territorial; therefore you should get a patent where there is a market for the invention.The Deputy Registrar of PRO stated that they “should be able to implement international patent filingsometime in May”. The cost for filing a patent in Brunei is $160.UBD|IBM Centre Organise the First Workshop onFlood Hydrology and MeteorologyBy Dr. Saiful Azmi Hj HusainThe UBD|IBM Centre, Universiti Brunei Darussalam organised a one-day workshop on Flood Hydrology &Meteorology on the 14 February 2012, in the Knowledge Hub building in Anggerek Desa.The objectives of the workshop were to bring together academic researchers, policy makers and students,address the importance of climate-weather modelling and hydrology modelling research, and to use themodels to address and tackle challenges in planning and developing strategies for better environmentalmanagement with reference to floods.Among the topics that were discussed by the international experts from IBM in the first session were thefundamentals of climate-weather modelling research and the potential areas of research relevanceto Brunei, developing the models using radar data, and instrumentation and data requirements forverification and validation of the model. The second session pertained to rivers, overland flow, and thecoupling of the hydrology model with the weather model leading to advanced flood forecasting. Theworkshop also highlighted some of the current work of the UBD|IBM Centre in climate-weather modellingresearch and its plans for future work. Among the selected participants for the workshop were staff fromthe Department of Drainage & Sewerage, Public Work Department, Ministry of Development, BruneiMeteorological Service, Ministry of Communication, National Disaster Management Centre, SurveyDepartment, Ministry of Development, National Modelling and Simulation Centre, Ministry of Defence andUniversiti Brunei Darussalam.The central aim of the workshop was to foster future collaboration between UBD|IBM Centre and therelevant ministries, whereby UBD|IBM Centre can provide assistance and contribute to local capacitybuilding to help achieve Brunei’s Vision 2035, using advanced modelling research to address currentenvironmental issues both nationally and internationally in ways that have high impact values on society.Through this collaboration, the Centre also aims to generate a new generation of scientific leaders, whowill be trained in high-performance supercomputing to conduct advanced and high impact modellingresearch that can help enhance human capital and accelerate the development of Brunei towardsbecoming a knowledge based economy, while solidifying the UBD|IBM Centre as a Centre of Excellence.

30DiscoverRESEARCHThe making of a “classic” in Southeast Asian Studies:Another look at Kahin, Agoncillo and the RevolutionsBy Dr. Rommel A. CuramingA joint seminar by the new Institute of Asian Studies (IAS) and the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS)was held on 14 March 2012. This seminar showcased the current research of Dr. Rommel A. Curaming, whois currently the Programme Leader of Historical Studies and Coordinator of the Southeast Asian StudiesProgramme at Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD).Before joining UBD, Dr. Curaming was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the National University of Singapore (NUS)and Research Fellow under the Endeavour Award Australia at La Trobe University. He obtained his PhDfrom the Australian National University (ANU) with a thesis that compared the state-historian relations inIndonesia and the Philippines during the Suharto and Marcos periods.The seminar explored the seminal works of George Kahin and Teodoro Agoncillo. Written at about thesame time in the late 1940s to early 1950s, George Kahin’s Nationalism and Revolution in Indonesia andTeodoro Agoncillo’s The Revolt of the Masses are two books of enormous influence in their respectivedomains: Indonesian and the Philippine Studies. Notwithstanding their comparable themes and scholarlyfeatures, however, Dr. Curaming showed that their status in the broader field of Southeast Asian Studiesappears divergent. Kahin’s book has long been widely and easily acknowledged as ‘classic’, whereasAgoncillo’s is accorded a rather ambivalent position, if considered at all. For instance, in the list of the‘most influential books’ in the field that appeared a few years ago in the Institute of Southeast AsianStudies’ (ISEAS) Sojourn: Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia, Kahin’s book figured prominently amongthe top fourteen books, whereas Agoncillo’s did not make it even to the long list of 45 nominated ones.During his seminar, Dr. Curaming took to task the processes which may have caused this divergence bycomparing and contrasting the subject-positions of the authors, and the politico-academic contexts inwhich they were written and consumed.Afterward, he generated some insights on possible factors that contribute to the formation of “authorialcapital” and its role in the making or unmaking of a classic in the field of Southeast Asian Studies. Inparticular, the paper addressed the questions of scholarly merit and the definition of a “classic”, thefeatures internal to particular country studies which stimulated or impeded the making of a potentialclassic, and the nature of political and academic architectures which were conducive or unreceptive topotential candidates. Dr. Curaming also questioned to what extent the ‘rules of the game’ have changedsince then to now, sixty years later.The implications of this paper range across the disciplines in confronting the nature of scholarship and the“corporate identity” and gatekeeping of academia. More seminars are expected to take place in theweeks to come.