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FOUR Bruneian youths yesterday departed for Beijing, China to address environmental issues at the International Youth Organisation Forum and Beijing Sister City Youth Camp. Rodziah Hj Adnan, Stephanie Yong, Mohd Khairullizan Mohd Yussof and Firdaus Ismail will participate in the forum and camp held from October 20 to 26. The youths are representatives from the Department of Environment, Parks and Recreation (JASTRE), Green Brunei and Beach Bunch. Rodziah, an officer at JASTRE’s Environmental Planning and Management Unit, said the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports extended its invitation to the department as environment will be one of the issues discussed during the forum. Firdaus from Green Brunei said the programme would benefit him in terms of knowledge sharing in aspects such as urban enviroment management and sustainability. He further said…

NON-governmental organisation Green Brunei is pushing for all schools to teach environmental education. Community Engagement Director Khairunnisa Ash’ari said the Ministry of Education should make sure recycling and waste management are incorporated into the school curriculum. In an interview yesterday, she said one of the ways youth can practise environment conservation as part of their lifestyle is when they are made aware from a young age. “For instance, if schools do not make it a culture for students to recycle, then it is more challenging to get the students to participate in green community activities.. “As a habit, students should be encouraged to switch off the lights and fans when not in use,” she added Although the Ministry of Education, through the Science, Technology and Environment Partnership (STEP) Centre, has…

GREEN Brunei is keen to strengthen its initiatives on environmental education and conservation next year. The initiatives include holding more green camps, school talks and encouraging more people to take part in tree-planting, said the non-profit organisation’s community engagement director Khairunnisa Ash’ari. She said through its activities this year, she realised there is great potential in engaging more young people. “So far, all our programmes have been short-term, and we want to look into having more long-term programmes which are sustainable,” she said. This year, it initiated two tree-planting activities in Bengkurong apart from other conservation activities. However, Khairunnisa said plans are under way to turn them into long-term programmes by having them more frequently. “We still have a lot to do in terms of reaching out to the community…

GREEN Brunei recently attended Singapore Power Shift, a kickstarter workshop aimed at building up climate knowledge as well as knowledge on how to run successful campaigns. The Bruneian non-profit organisation was represented by its Community Engagement Director Khairunnisa Ash’ari, with support from the British High Commission. Organised by global climate movement organisation 350.org, Singapore Power Shift was part of 350.org’s second phase of the Global Power Shift (which took place in Turkey last year). The two-day workshop saw participation from over 50 youth from Southeast Asian countries, and focused on topics relevant to climate change movements around the world. Participants were also exposed to a wide range of campaigning skills and techniques through case studies, which were presented by different non-government organisations within and outside Singapore. Five campaign proposals were…

Khairunnisa listened intently as the speaker went on about the harmful effects of carbon dioxide on the environment and what Singapore has been doing to slow down global warming.  It was just less than 12 hours ago that Khairunnisa flew in from Brunei to attend the Singapore Power Shift organised by 350 Singapore held over a span of two days.  350 Singapore was founded by Young NTUC in March 2010. Speaking with a glint in her eye, Khairunnisa shares her passion in creating sustainable development. “Right now in Brunei, the environmental impact is not so obvious, we know that the problems with the environment such as haze, and water pollution crosses geographic boundaries but Brunei don’t have these problems right now, however with all these new knowledge that I can…

GREEN thumbs went beyond their backyards yesterday as they participated in a mangrove planting activity that was held along the river banks of Sg Damuan. Organised by local non-government organisation Green Brunei, the event is supported by the Forestry Department, Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources and HSBC Brunei. A total of 39 participants — comprising members of the organiser as well as staff from the Forestry Department — planted 105 mangrove saplings and at the same time learn about the importance of the plants in the ecosystem. “Mangrove forests provide protection and shelter against extreme weather events such as floods,” shared Forestry Assistant and Head of Bukit Patoi Forest Recreational Park and Selirong Island Unit, Mohamad Rozizan Mohd Maslin to the participants at the planting site. At the same…

ONE hundred mangrove trees were planted along Sg Damuan, Bengkurong on Saturday by over 30 volunteers. The Mangrove Planting Project 2014 hopes to rehabilitate the area to restore the habitat for the wildlife at the river bank such as the proboscis monkeys. Aside from planting trees, the volunteers from Green Brunei, HSBC, educational institutions, the Forestry Department and general public, also collected trash on the river bank to be recycled. It was the second mangrove tree planting in Bengkurong organised by Green Brunei. “Last year, we planted 200 trees with the help of the Forestry Department together with participants of the ASEAN Young Professionals Volunteer Corps (AYPVC) Seminar. Both events were supported by HSBC Brunei. “Hopefully we will be able to engage more volunteers to take part in our future…

THE Green Brunei team was given the opportunity to visit the site of Brunei's first renewable energy project on Saturday. Located at the former Seria Power Station, the Tenaga Suria Brunei Photovoltaic Power Generation Demonstration Project (TSB Project), is a joint project between the local government and Mitsubitshi Corporation, and is part of Brunei's commitment towards developing sustainable energy sources. The seven-member team from Green Brunei, led by Lim Yong Chee, were hosted by TSB officers from the Energy Department Hj Jufri and Raymee. The visit began with an introduction to the history and milestones of Tenaga Suria. According to the presentation, the plant began operations in 2011. The TSB PV system has a nominal capacity of 1.2 MW and is able to generate 1,344 MWh of electricity per year,…

ENVIRONMENT groups have called for a ban on plastic bags in the sultanate. The non-governmental organisations (NGOs) said it was time for the No Plastic Weekend campaign in major supermarkets to be turned into a daily basis. Community Engagement Director at Green Brunei Khairunnisa Ash’ari said a much stronger move was needed to change habits among members of the public. “Although we see more people bringing green bags to supermarkets during the weekends, it is not the same case during the weekdays. “This clearly shows that most people only comply in bringing their own bags because supermarkets are taking part in the government initiative by not providing plastic bags,” she said in an interview. Khairunnisa said it takes time for habits to change, and banning plastic bags would encourage people…