Exploring Guadeloupe: BCOMING's Latest Mission in Aquatic Diversity
Our team, consisting of Dr. Marine Combe, Dr. Claudia Bommarito and Prof. Rudy E. Gozlan from the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development in Montpellier (France), just returned from a mission in Guadeloupe for the BCOMING project, which took place between the 22nd and the 28th of October.
Sampling Campaigns In Ivory Coast, Cambodia and Guadeloupe (Aquatic Part)
As part of the BCOMING project, a series of aquatic (freshwater) samplings were performed in Ivory Coast (May 2023), Cambodia (July 2023) and Guadeloupe (October 2023) to identify the patterns of biodiversity of the aquatic communities and their parasites in tropical areas along a gradient of urbanisation, with the aim of i) identifying drivers of disease emergence and ii) preventing disease risk. Our team consist of Dr. Marine Combe (CR, IRD), Dr. Claudia Bommarito (PostDoc, IRD), Prof. Rudy E. Gozlan (DR, IRD) and Ms. Chloé Lefebvre (Technician, IRD) from the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD) and the Institute of Evolutionary Sciences of Montpellier (ISEM), France. As responsible team of the aquatic sampling, it was exciting to finalize together the last details of the sampling, prepare and ship the material, and finally see the field campaigns taking place.
The Power of Indigenous Wisdom: Combating Climate Change and Protecting Biodiversity
Climate change and biodiversity loss are urgent challenges. To find solutions, we can learn from indigenous peoples who have lived in harmony with nature for generations.
BCOMING field trips in Guinea and Cambodia (part 2)
Following the first field trip to Guinea I joined the Institut Pasteur du Cambodge (IPC) field team from May 2nd to 8th to Stung Treng, one of the main study site for the whole BCOMING project.
BCOMING – Bats population dynamic study: Implementation of protocol
BCOMING team in Cambodia is thrilled to share that the bats field activities have kicked off! From May 2nd to 8th, 2023, the Institut Pasteur du Cambodge (IPC) and the Forestry Administration (FA, under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fishery) collaborated to conduct the first field work in a selected are in Stung Treng Province. Stung Treng province, is located in northeast of Cambodia at the border of Laos at around 350 kilometers to Phnom Penh. This location has been closely monitored for potentially zoonotic viruses since 2020. During this mission, the primary goal was to capture and sample bats, with a special focus on Rhinolophus shameli individuals.
MICROPLASTICS - A RISK FOR INCREASED INFECTIOUS DISEASES?
World Environment Day, celebrated annually on 5 June, is a global initiative that brings together individuals, businesses, governments, and organisations to raise awareness and act on pressing environmental issues.
The BCOMING and IDAlert projects have launched a campaign to celebrate World Health Day and honor the 75th anniversary of the World Health Organization (WHO).
Community engagement process in Stung Treng, Cambodia
A central pillar of the BCOMING project is the engagement with communities that live in close proximity to areas where zoonotic risks are high. In the case of Cambodia the zoonotic risk is linked to bat populations that live in caves nearby Sam’ang village.