Biological diversity, also called biodiversity, is fundamental for human life, as well as being vital for creating environmental balance. Mankind has benefited from biodiversity, as it provides natural services such as fresh water and clean air, biological resources such as medicinal plants and food, as well as socio-economic benefits of tourism. Thailand is situated in "Indo-Burma" – a biodiversity hotspot that is ranked as the eighth most bio-diverse region in the world. The country itself has one of the world's highest biodiversity per unit area. This rich natural environment enables Thailand to generate economic value from its biological resources and enhance its competitiveness.
To strengthen biodiversity R&D in Thailand, three agencies under Ministry of Science and Technology, namely the National Science and Technology Development Agency (NSTDA); Thailand Institute of Scientific and Technological Research (TISTR) and National Science Museum (NSM) entered into a memorandum of understanding on 5 April 2011. Under the MOU, three parties agreed to integrate their information on biodiversity resources.
BIOTEC/NSTDA specializes in the study to survey and form an inventory of microorganisms isolated from natural environments in Thailand as well as comprehensive research program on microbial utilization. TISTR has its strength in the study of algae and plant for renewable alternative energy, food and agricultural production and plant nutrient. NSM Natural History Museum houses two big collections of plant and animal reference collection and holotype specimens, the first specimen of a species.
ThaiSciBiodiversity.org is an integrated database on biodiversity resources initiated from the above-mentioned MOU. It contains information about organisms grouped and categorized by their structure, source and geography. This database can be utilized and serves various activities such as community based ecotourism, preservation of natural environment, research and geographic references.
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