Investigators: Dominic Rowland, Dr. Susan Cheyne, Laura D'Arcy, Andrea Hoening, Michal Zrust, Katherine Breslin,
Juli Setiawan, Peter Houlihan, Mila Rahmania, M. Yunnus Adrian Saputra, Iis Sabahudin, Yiyi Erisa, Andhi Suncoco,
Pak Aspur
The BRINCC Expedition is a four month long expedition up the Murung River and into the Murung Valley, which sits in the
heart of Indonesian Borneo. The Murung Valley is a remote wilderness surrounded by rugged hills and covered in 'stunning'
dipterocarp forests. Little scientific knowledge is available about this area, however its high biodiversity and local
communities are already under threat from industrial mining and logging operations. This not only displaces endemic and
possibly unknown species, but also hurts human livelihoods as local resources are destroyed or polluted.
In order to better understand not only the biological but also human environment of the Murung valley, a team of nine
researchers from around the world have united with local Bornean efforts. The group will fly, drive, and boat to the
village of Tubang Tujang, where they will split into two teams. A biological team will leave the village to live in
primitive low-impact sites in the forest, studying wildlife populations and developing future conservation initiatives.
At the same time, a social team will stay in Tubang Tujang (and surrounding villages) to conduct surveys, interviews, and
focus groups as well as document pollution levels and the local impact of industrialization. The social team will
cooperate with the local communities to develop resource management plans, which should empower the small villages to
protect their environment and ways of life. The results of both of these studies will be used in scientific publications,
school programs, environmental management plans and films to raise ecological and social awareness.
As of July 2011 the BRINCC Expedition is already well underway. The researchers have reached Tubang Tujang and have split
into the two distinct teams. The social team is already busy while the biology team has made camp and, with what seemed
to be an inaugural visit by a troop of proboscis monkeys, have started work documenting the local wildlife. Tweets and
blog posts are coming in as we speak at the
BRINCC site.
If you feel like a wider perspective or maybe learning what you can do to help BRINCC visit their official
website.
