May 24, 2019 – BIOTEC and Xishaungbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) signed the Memorandum of Understanding on Ecological Research to officiate the collaboration between the 2 institutes.Since 2017, BIOTEC and XTBG have been working together on a collaborative project entitled “Multi-disciplinary research on the mechanisms driving community assembly along a tropical latitudinal gradient in Indo-China Peninsula”. From the geography, Xishuangbanna and Thailand are located on longitude 101ºE where Xishuangbanna is at the edge of the tropic and Thailand is at the center of this gradient. The main objective is to study patterns of functional diversity along a tropical latitudinal gradient in the Indo-China peninsula where there is a distinct environment gradient, interspersed with a number of more abrupt climatic gradients mediated by topography and oceanic currents. A study site is located at Mo Singto Forest Dynamics Plot, Khao Yai National Park. The Mo Singto Plot is a part of the large forest plots network, the Smithsonian’s Forest Global Earth Observatory (ForestGEO). The collaboration of BIOTEC and XTBG will provide a great opportunity by sharing and comparing data from both sides. This will enhance our understanding of scientific knowledge locally and regionally.
