MULU: National parks in Sarawak will benefit from a training workshop which was jointly organised by Asean Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) of Japan; Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Malaysia (NRE); and Sarawak Forestry.

The 11-day event which began in Mulu National Park on Monday was conducted under topics like Biodiversity Assessment Methodologies, Data Gathering and Communication, and Education and Public Awareness for Park Management Staff.

It is funded by Asean Integration Fund (JAIF) and East and Southeast Asia Biodiversity Information Initiative (ESABII) and Ministry of Environment-Japan (MoE-J) as a continuing partnership to strengthen taxonomy in Asean with training that focused on lowland forest trees of Sarawak.

Sarawak Forestry, in a statement yesterday, said the event had gathered 25 protected area managers, forest rangers and staff of protected areas and Asean Heritage Parks (AHP), and other government environment agencies from eight Asean member states.

It was an opportunity for learning, discussion, practical field applications and exercises, and laboratory work on topics such as geographic evolution and elevation patterns of vegetation in Southeast Asia; assessment methods, data gathering, analysis and interpretation; GIS as a tool for biodiversity analysis; ecosystem services of tropical and temperate forests; and the taxonomy of Dipterocarpaceae and Sapotaceae.

Discussions and training on communication, education, and public awareness (Cepa) is also included in the workshop as knowledge development materials, while the values of protecting areas and Asean Heritage Parks are promoted as integral to conservation work that may generate stronger support for taxonomy work in Asean.

Sarawak Forestry CEO Wong Ting Chung highlighted the importance of the workshop especially in view of the recent launch of Rimba Sarawak by the Chief Minister which opens up the totally protected areas of Sarawak to international research and studies.

He also shared news of the discovery of one more ‘world-class’ cave in Mulu as well as prospects for new collaborations with ACB and other partners in the region.Meanwhile, ACB executive director Atty. Roberto V. Oliva said Gunung Mulu National Park is one of the earliest parks under the AHP programme declared in 1984.

He said: “Taxonomists and protected area staff will have much to learn from the rich biodiversity of the park and also from the protected area and ecotourism management practices of Gunung Mulu National Park.”

“In addition to enhanced skills and capabilities in taxonomy, the workshop will also produce a draft field guide on the lowland forest trees of the Dipterocarpaceae and Sapotaceae families in Gunung Mulu.”