Distinguished Professor Victor T. King of the Institute of Asian Studies at Universiti Brunei Darussalam (IAS @ UBD) presented the inaugural lecture in the Academy of Brunei Studies Distinguished Lecture Series.Entitled “Making the Malay World: Region-Formation in Interdisciplinary Perspective,” the talk was a reflection on Borneo and Borneo Studies in the Malay World.For more information, please see the flyer below.

The Institute of Asian Studies at Universiti Brunei Darussalam (IAS @ UBD) is carrying out a research project on the Dusun in Brunei together with the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS) at UBD.Funded by FASS, this B$23,000 research project is entitled “Making Sense of ‘Dusunness’: Representing and Deconstructing Ethnic Identity.” The project is led by Asiyah Kumpoh (FASS), and the team of collaborators includes Yabit Alas (Language Centre), Lian Kwen Fee (IAS), Tong Chee Kiong (UBD) , and Faizul Ibrahim (IAS/FASS).Since the 1950s and leading to independence in 1984, Brunei evolved into a Malay-Muslim monarchical state practicing assimilationist…

The Institute of Asian Studies at Universiti Brunei Darussalam (IAS @ UBD) is pleased to share the report from the 5th Network of ASEAN-China Academic Institutes (NACAI) International Symposium.NACAI is a network for academic exchange and cooperation that was established in 2017. Its activities are coordinated by the Center for China’s Relations with Neighboring Countries at Fudan University (CCRNC-Fudan).As one of the founding members of NACAI, IAS hosted the 5th NACAI International Symposium on 16 October 2021 with the theme of “Trade Linkages and Supply Chains Resilience: Navigating the COVID-19 New Normal.”Please click below to read the report from the…

The Institute of Asian Studies (IAS) held a special event to recognize and thank three staff members, Professor of Borneo Studies Victor T. King and administrative staff members Zainah Omar and Mariah Suleiman, for their many years of service to IAS. Hosted by Director of IAS Dr. Bruno Jetin and Deputy Director Dr. Noor Hasharina Hassan, the event was graciously attended by Vice Chancellor of Universiti Brunei Darusssalam Datin Dr. Anita B. Z. Pehin Dato Abdul Aziz. Professor Victor T. King is transitioning to semi-retirement after a long period of engagement with Brunei. Dr. King worked at the Brunei Museum…

The Institute of Asian Studies at Universiti Brunei Darussalam (IAS @ UBD) is pleased to share its latest newsletter.To learn about the work of the Institute and its researchers, please see below.To view previous IAS newsletters, please click here. October 2021 Newsletter (Please refresh the page if the newsletter does not load.)

Dr. Lisa Arensen, Assistant Professor of Environment and Sustainable Development in Southeast Asia at the Institute of Asian Studies at Universiti Brunei Darussalam, has been awarded First Prize in the 2021 Creative Ethnographic Prose Writing Competition, sponsored by the Society for Humanistic Anthropology.An experiment in reflexive writing about development work in Cambodia, Dr. Arensen’s paper is entitled “Province of Thieves: An Essay on Violence, Reflexivity and the Cross-Cultural Encounter.”The Creative Ethnographic Prose Competition is meant to highlight the potential for story to simultaneously engage readers and explore topics of anthropological concern.Dr. Arensen’s award-winning paper will be published in a forthcoming…

Dr. Victor T. King, Professor of Borneo Studies at the Institute of Asian Studies at Universiti Brunei Darussalam recently gave a talk to the Panaga Photographic Society (PPS) on Borneo through photographs.In this talk, Professor King discussed photographs that he had taken over 50 years of conducting research on Borneo and highlighted the ways that these photographs can illuminate the many changes that societies on Borneo, including Brunei, have undergone over that period.In noting the value of photographs for documenting societies, Professor King encouraged members of the PPS to take photos of current societies, as those photos will in time…

The Institute of Asian Studies (IAS) had a strong presence at the recent Universiti Brunei Darussalam – Borneo Studies Network (UBD-BSN) Borneo Studies Conference held 30 June - 1 July 2021 at UBD and virtually with the theme of “Borneo Within, Borneo Beyond.”IAS Director, Associate Professor Bruno Jetin, a member of the conference organizing committee, introduced the first keynote of the conference by Dr. Victor T. King, Professor of Borneo Studies at IAS. Professor King’s keynote was entitled “A Contextualization and Deconstruction of Borneo Studies over the last 50 Years,” and it provided a comprehensive context for understanding how Borneo…

The Institute of Asian Studies at Universiti Brunei Darussalam (IAS @ UBD) is pleased to announce the publication of Ethnobotany of the Mountain Regions of Southeast Asia.Edited by Deputy Director of IAS, Assistant Professor F. Merlin Franco, and part of Springer’s “Ethnobotany of Mountain Regions” series, this volume is a compendium that discusses the medicinal, cultural, and economic importance of major plant species of the mountainous regions of Southeast Asia.At 1137 pages, and with contributions from 37 individual authors, Ethnobotany of the Mountain Regions of Southeast Asia offers the latest full-range research on important plants in Southeast Asia’s mountainous regions.The…

The Institute of Asian Studies (IAS) at Universiti Brunei Darussalam is a research institute dedicated to producing and disseminating cutting-edge knowledge about the societies, economies, politics, cultures and histories of the Asian region. As a research institute, we are interested in candidates who are very productive in research and publish in top academic journals, who have a solid experience in international collaboration and who can contribute to the IAS “Asia in transition” Springer book series.Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) is the leading higher education institution in Brunei Darussalam. It partners with more than 100 world-leading universities and institutions spanning 6 continents…