RIMBA SECONDARY SCHOOL ACHIEVES THIRD PLACE IN SEAMEO-JAPAN EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (ESD) AWARD 2026

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Friday | 13 Rabiulakhir 1448 | 25 September 2026

BRUNEI DARUSSALAM – The Ministry of Education, through the Science, Technology and Environment Partnership Centre (STEP Centre), today coordinated the participation of schools in Brunei Darussalam in the SEAMEO-Japan ESD Award 2026. Through this participation, Rimba Secondary School successfully secured third place in the SEAMEO-Japan Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) Award 2026 with its student project entitled, “RimbaScan: From Using AI to Thinking with AI – Student-Built Offline AI for Plant Learning, Human Agency and Sustainable Futures.”

The 2026 SEAMEO-Japan ESD Award, themed “Learning and Well-being for Sustainable Futures: Leveraging the Power of AI”, was organised by the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan, with the support of UNESCO Bangkok. A total of 160 schools from nine Southeast Asian countries participated in the competition, with seven schools selected to advance to the final round, which comprised an online presentation and question-and-answer session.

The RimbaScan project was created and developed by Rimba Secondary School students Ahmad Khairi Zakwan bin Haji Muhd Marzuki, Md Noor Ghazi Afif bin Md Noor Faizan, Muhammad Danny Daniel bin Abdullah and Ahmad Razeen bin Adi Shahreen, under the guidance of Cikgu Lena Ang Yan Ping, an Education Officer at the school.

The core principle of RimbaScan is that AI should support human judgement rather than replace it. In learning activities, students first make their own observations and predictions before using AI. They then compare the AI’s results with evidence, assess their level of confidence, conduct verification when necessary, and make final decisions based on their own judgement. This approach helps foster critical thinking, evidence-based reasoning, self-confidence, human agency, and a responsible understanding of AI’s capabilities and limitations.

This approach aligns with the theme of the SEAMEO-Japan ESD Award 2026, which emphasises the ethical and responsible use of AI to strengthen learning and well-being, while addressing real-world sustainability challenges. The award also places emphasis on student leadership, community collaboration, continuity, and demonstrable impact.

The recognition received through the SEAMEO-Japan ESD Award 2026 marks another significant achievement in the continued development of RimbaScan. The project team plans to expand its implementation in classrooms, strengthen verification efforts with farmers and experts, develop more learning materials related to plants and biodiversity, and produce teaching resources that can be utilised by groups of students in the future. This achievement follows several of the previous accomplishments by RimbaScan since its creation in 2025 at the national, regional and international levels. These include recognition at the ASEAN Youth Camp 2025 AI Hackathon for Green Sustainability; a Merit Award in the Secondary School Category of the Brunei ICT Awards (BICTA) 2025; Fourth Place in the R.E.A.L. Learning Competition 2025 organised by the Science, Technology and Environment Partnership Centre (STEP Centre); two Bronze Medals in the Special Award for the Application of STEM Concepts and Special Award for Commercial Potential categories at the 14th Regional Congress Search for SEAMEO Young Scientists Programme 2025/2026; and a Merit Award in the Secondary School Category of BICTA 2026 through the project “RimbaScan 2.0: Smart AI Plant Assistant”.

SEKOLAH MENENGAH RIMBA BERJAYA MERAIH TEMPAT KETIGA DALAM SEAMEO-JAPAN EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (ESD) AWARD 2026

Jumaat | 13 Rabiulakhir 1448 | 25 September 2026

BRUNEI DARUSSALAM – Kementerian Pendidikan melaluiPusat Kerjasama Sains, Teknologi dan Alam Sekitar (Pusat STEP) telah menyelaras penyertaan sekolah-sekolah di Negara Brunei Darussalam ke pertandingan SEAMEO-Japan ESD bagi tahun 2026. Daripada penyertaan tersebut, Sekolah Menengah Rimba telah berjaya meraih Tempat Ketiga dalam SEAMEO-Japan Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) Award 2026 menerusi projek pelajar yang bertajuk, “RimbaScan: From Using AI to Thinking with AI – Student-Built Offline AI for Plant Learning, Human Agency and Sustainable Futures.”

Anugerah SEAMEO-Japan ESD bagi tahun 2026 bertemakan “Learning and Well-being for Sustainable Futures: Leveraging the Power of AI” dianjurkan oleh Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) dengan kerjasama Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Jepun serta sokongan UNESCO Bangkok. Sebanyak 160 buah sekolah dari sembilan buah negara Asia Tenggara telah menyertai pertandingan ini, dengan tujuh buah sekolah terpilih ke peringkat akhir yang merangkumi pembentangan dan sesi soal jawab secara dalam talian.

Projek RimbaScan dicipta dan dikembangkan oleh pelajar-pelajar SM Rimba iaitu Ahmad Khairi Zakwan bin Haji Muhd Marzuki, Md Noor Ghazi Afif bin Md Noor Faizan, Muhammad Danny Daniel bin Abdullah dan Ahmad Razeen bin Adi Shahreen, di bawah bimbingan Cikgu Lena Ang Yan Ping, Pegawai Pelajaran sekolah tersebut.

Prinsip utama RimbaScan ialah AI menyokong pertimbangan manusia dan bukan menggantikannya. Dalam aktiviti pembelajaran, pelajar terlebih dahulu membuat pemerhatian dan ramalan sendiri sebelum menggunakan AI. Mereka kemudiannya membandingkan keputusan AI dengan bukti, menilai tahap keyakinan, membuat pengesahan apabila diperlukan dan membuat keputusan akhir berdasarkan pertimbangan sendiri. Pendekatan ini membantu memupuk pemikiran kritis, penggunaan bukti, keyakinan diri, agensi manusia serta kefahaman yang bertanggungjawab terhadap keupayaan dan batasan AI.

Pendekatan tersebut selaras dengan tema SEAMEO-Japan ESD Award 2026 yang menekankan penggunaan AI secara beretika dan berhemah bagi memperkukuh pembelajaran dan kesejahteraan, di samping menangani cabaran kelestarian dunia sebenar. Anugerah ini turut memberi penekanan kepada kepimpinan pelajar, kerjasama komuniti, kesinambungan serta impak yang dapat ditunjukkan.

Pengiktirafan SEAMEO-Japan ESD Award 2026 ini menjadi satu lagi pencapaian penting dalam perkembangan berterusan RimbaScan. Pasukan projek merancang untuk memperluaskan pelaksanaan di bilik darjah, memperkukuh pengesahan bersama petani dan pakar, membangunkan lebih banyak bahan pembelajaran berkaitan tanaman dan biodiversiti serta menghasilkan sumber pengajaran yang boleh digunakan oleh kumpulan pelajar pada masa akan datang.

Kejayaan ini menyusuli beberapa pencapaian terdahulu RimbaScan sejak mula diciptakan pada tahun 2025 di peringkat kebangsaan, serantau dan antarabangsa, diantaranya ialah pengiktirafan dalam ASEAN Youth Camp 2025 AI Hackathon for Green Sustainability, Merit Award dalam Kategori Sekolah Menengah Brunei ICT Awards (BICTA) 2025, tempat Ke-Empat dalam pertandingan anjuran Pusat Kerjasama Sains Teknologi dan Alam Sekitar (Pusat STEP) R.E.A.L. Learning Competition 2025, dua Pingat Gangsa dalam kategori Special Award for the Application of STEM Concepts dan Special Award for Commercial Potential di 14th Regional Congress Search for SEAMEO Young Scientists Programme 2025/2026, dan Merit Award dalam Kategori Sekolah Menengah BICTA 2026 menerusi projek “RimbaScan 2.0: Smart AI Plant Assistant.

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