Tropical field course 2025: a unique insight into rainforest ecology and conservation
Last month 28 students and staff from the Departments of Plant Sciences and Zoology along with 6 Malaysian students from local universities, travelled to the Danum Valley Field Centre in Sabah, Malaysian Borneo for this year’s tropical field course.
The course is a great opportunity for students about to start the third year of their undergraduate studies to experience tropical rainforest ecology and conservation. Whilst on the trip the students conduct their own research projects and gain hands-on experience collecting field data.
Professor David Edwards, Professor of Plant Ecology and Head of Tropical Ecology and Conservation group at the Department of Plant Sciences, and member of the Conservation Research Institute, is one of the field course leaders. He said, “The tropical field course immerses students within the Bornean rainforest, where they get first hand experience of tropical ecology and the conservation challenges facing these forests and their unique biodiversity — an opportunity which proves truly life changing. Throughout the course, students build expertise in independent research and transferable skills from developing testable questions to field-based sampling and effective project management."
“Field courses are important because they provide hands-on experience in the outdoors, developing essential practical skills like project design, sampling, and data collection. They can be challenging and fun simultaneously — helping students develop a stronger connection to and appreciation for the natural world,” said Professor Christine Miller, Professor of Biotic Interactions and a course leader from the Department of Zoology.
Read the entire original article by Jane Durkin, including testimonials about the trip by undergraduates, on the Department of Plant Sciences website on19/11/2025:
Photo by Suzanne Robberegt on Unsplash