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LOWER Six students of the Sengkurong Sixth Form Centre (PTES) cheered as spectacular pictures taken by their peers were displayed at the Green Wave event held at the centre’s Multimedia Theatre yesterday. The event was aimed at raising awareness on environmental issues that impact the nation, and to enable the youth to cultivate an interest in environmental protection. It also gave the students an opportunity to utilise and hone their skills in photography and descriptive writing. As part of the event, an Instagram photo competition was held earlier where students were invited to post photos that carry the themes on deforestation, eco-tourism, pollution, population and wildlife. Over 100 entries were received and students with the top five photos and the most likes were asked to give a short presentation to…

A TOTAL of 28 students from Sixth Form Centres across the nation recently participated in a Green Leadership Camp (GLC). The second edition of the two-day one-night camp was organised by Green Brunei, a non-profit organisation that focuses in promoting environmental education and conservation. Initiated by the organisation’s founder, Khairunnisa Ash’ari, and led by Camp Leader Firdaus Ismail, the camp was held to raise the awareness of environmental issues among youths while adapting to the theme “Ideas into Action”. Four students from Belait-based Sayyidina Ali Secondary School (SMSA), who participated in the camp, shared their experiences.     “The camp has inspired me to further educate the youth within our community as our planned project. This will mainly focus on raising awareness on the environmental issues that we are currently…

THE United States (US) Embassy in Brunei Darussalam yesterday hosted an outreach event for local Non-Hovernment Organisations (NGOs) and Bruneians who have actively participated in the US government-sponsored cultural exchange programmes. Titled ‘Conversations’, the public diplomacy programme was aimed at encouraging dialogue and the exchange of ideas on volunteerism in the Sultanate. Present at the event was the co-founder of Green Brunei, Khairunnisa Ash’ari, who shared her experiences as a participant in the recent International Visitor Leadership Programme (IVLP) in the US. Khairunnisa’s recent three-week trip focused mainly on volunteerism and youth. She said that the IVLP programme gave her a better understanding of the volunteering culture in the US. “The program itself was beyond exposure to the work of various nonprofit organisations; it was also about understanding the service-learning…

SOME 16 people representing 1stopbrunei Wildlife Club, Brunei Nature Society, Museums Department, Police Rangers, Green Brunei and Institute of Biodiversity and Environmental Research of Universiti Brunei Darussalam attended a field training session held in Ulu Belait recently. During the eight-hour walk in the jungle which began at 3pm, participants surveyed the local wildlife in the region and more specifically kept an eye open for suitable pangolin habitats. The trek was led by Muhammad Shavez, who was accompanied by British conservationist and pangolin expert, Louise Fletcher, who provided information and advice to the other participants. A bird count also took place, with the rare Great Argus being heard twice throughout the journey. Participants included the President of Brunei Nature Society, Professor Ulmar Grafe, who spotted and identified seven different species of frogs,…

THE founder of Green Brunei Khairunnisa Ash’ari has become the first Bruneian to be awarded the Queen’s Young Leaders Award, in recognition of her leadership in the community. A statement by the British High Commission in Brunei said Khairunnisa was one of the 60 young individuals from across the Commonwealth nations to receive the Queen’s Young Leaders Award. Winners of the award will receive training, mentoring and networking, including a one-week residential programme in the United Kingdom during which they will collect their award from Queen Elizabeth II, according to the award’s website. Speaking to The Brunei Times, Khairunnisa said she was nominated online by a friend last August and had to write essays about activities she had done, while also going through a phone interview in November before finding…

PROCEEDS from Asia Inc Forum’s Trash to Treasure campaign was officially presented to three environmental Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO) yesterday. The campaign was held as a corporate social responsibility initiative in conjunction with the National Environment Conference (NEC) 2014, which took place earlier this year. It was organised against the backdrop of Brunei producing 1.4kg per capita of trash every day, where 70 per cent of the total waste produced goes directly to Brunei’s six landfills and only two per cent into making compost, while the rest is disposed of in other ways. The rationale behind the campaign is that waste can be reduced by about 80 per cent for the average household or business if effectively recycled. As Asia Inc Forum stated, “Recycling is an essential activity to ensure Brunei…

ASIA Inc Forum (AIF) held a cheque presentation ceremony yesterday at the AIF’s main office to appreciate the hard work of three non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that successfully conducted one of the recycling activities this year - The Trash to Treasure Campaign. The gathering during the event had representatives from the Society for Community Outreach and Training (SCOT), the Beach Bunch and Green Brunei. Also attending during the presentation were representatives from conference partners TOTAL, Butra Heidelberg and Baiduri Bank. According to the Programme Manager of Asia Inc Forum, Nanette Ramos said, “The Trash to Treasure Campaign is a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative held in conjunction with this year’s National Environment Conference was a collaboration with JASTRE, Ministry of Development - the main government agency that is involved in Brunei’s waste…

SEVERAL non-governmental organisations are calling on young people who are passionate about volunteering to either join them or set up their own volunteer groups. Rizan Latif, president of Beach Bunch, an NGO that focuses on protecting Brunei’s beaches from pollution, told The Brunei Times that nearly 90 per cent of their activities are driven by volunteers who are keen to contribute to society and make a change. “I think if youths would like to get engaged, at the end of the day, it is their own beliefs and values that will determine whether they want to contribute back to society,” he said. Volunteering, Rizan said, is not something that can be learned in school. “Volunteering also depends on how passionate a person is. If they are really (keen on volunteering),…