The Seishin Girls’ High School 2011 visit to Borneo was yet another great success. During the week-long visit, this year’s eleven participants were given a unique opportunity to experience the biological and cultural diversity of Sabah, one of the two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. They returned to Japan with a host of great memories and a fresh motivation to pursue their studies.
　The trip opened at the Institute of Tropical Biology and Conservation at the University of Malaysia Sabah (UMS) located in Kota Kinabalu. Students received an orientation and tour of the Institute, which is dedicated to promoting sustainability in Sabah. The following day Institute lecturers gave talks on plant diversity, insects, sustainability and eco-tourism, and first year biology students organized recreational activities.
　During the next phase of the trip, students went on a number of excursions in and around Kota Kinabalu to places of ecological importance. These places included Mangrove forests, wetlands, Mount Kinabalu, and climaxed with a river cruise, where students viewed numerous flora, fauna and wildlife including the long-nosed proboscis monkeys.
　The group then moved east to the city of Sandakan for the final two days of the trip. After a two hour drive from Sandakan airport, students arrived at the Proboscis Lodge located on the Kinabatangan River. There they enjoyed a night and morning river cruise during which they spotted birds, wild cats, and were even able to see a group of monkeys diving into the river in order to cross it. A rare sight indeed !