Research and Innovation for Sustainability

The Royal Project has been working to become a low-carbon and sustainable community by setting a benchmark for sustainable development in the highlands. The project aims to create a model for other similar communities to follow in order to reduce their carbon footprint and achieve sustainability.

The increasing threat of plastic pollution to the Mekong River, the MRC Riverine Plastic Monitoring Programme (RPM) to assess the status and trends of macro- and microplastics pollution has been developed. And field pilot of the three (3) protocols of the MRC RPM aiming to obtain knowledge and necessary to adapt the draft monitoring protocols to the situations of the Mekong River prior to conducting a full-scale monitoring.

Animal Speak by Mahidol with an aim to promote a positive attitude towards animals and educate children and youth regarding animal behaviours and their natural habitats, the university has established ’’Animals Speak [by Mahidol] aired on the Mahidol Kids, Mahidol Channel on Youtube.

The Khao Yai National Park is a part of the UNESCO world heritage site and a significant area for ecology. It helps to preserve rare and endangered wildlife and plant species. Two species of primates, the white-handed gibbon and the pileated gibbon, are inhabitants of the park. Long-term studies of gibbons in the park have been conducted since 1967 by a team of researchers. The research team has been monitoring and surveying the ecology, population, and biology of the gibbons, the diversity of flora, seed dispersal, and the relationships between different species for over 20 years. The operations are aimed towards conservation planning and preservation of endangered species.

Chemical-free vegetable farm was initiated in order to provide non-pesticide contaminated vegetables for the university staff, students and nearby communities. The university has selected farmers who have organic vegetables knowledge and experience to reclaim and improve soil quality in the area of 4 rai, where was unused area.

Developing and enhancing mechanisms for equality in education in partnership with agencies and organizations caring for and assisting Bangkok’’s early childhood groups.

Mahidol University received a grant from the Austrian Government to create a representative study of children of the Migrant Learning Center (MLC) in Phop Phra and Tha Song Yang Sub-districts in Mae Sot Province to make a comparison with children in the nearby Thai Early Childhood Development Center (ECCD).

Reducing the gender gap in business sector, and expanding the number of female executives are two key goals for advancing gender parity. As a result, this initiative is propelled by a number of events and initiatives aimed at educating the public about the importance of women in business. Actions include a public conference on International Women’’s Day, two research projects, a program on leadership encoding among women in positions of power, and an examination of the competencies required of transwomen in the leadership position.

Besides being one of the main headwaters of Chanthaburi river, North Ta-riu sub-tributary, Khao Soi Dao wildlife sanctuary has been the habitat of many endangered mammals with the efforts of community-based conservation by local people for more than a decade. However, these ecosystem services will be destroyed if the Khlong Ta Liu Dam project of the Royal Irrigation Department was successfully re-proposed to construct in this area.

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5 or fine particulate matter with a diameter up to 2.5 microns) is one of the most important causes of premature deaths. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that outdoor air pollution caused 4.2 million premature deaths globally in 2016 due to PM2.5 exposure. The PM2.5 exposure could lead to cardiovascular and respiratory disease, and cancers (WHO, 2021). In Thailand, overall PM2.5 concentrations have been reduced continuously. Nonetheless, the annual average PM2.5 concentrations in Thailand have still exceeded the World Health Organization standards throughout the past 10 years. Transport sector is one of the major sources of PM2.5 emissions. Understanding the potential health impacts and costs of PM2.5 formation from different modes of transport will help raising the awareness of the public due to the realisation on the PM2.5 footprint of their actions. PM2.5 footprint is considered as the health impacts from PM2.5 formation throughout life cycle of products and organisations. PM2.5 footprint is quantified by multiplying emissions with characterisation factors. Afterwards, the health costs could be obtained by economic evaluation of the health impacts. The PM2.5 Footprint Calculator v1.01 was developed as a tool for enhancing environmentally sustainable passenger transport in Thailand. The PM2.5 Footprint Calculator v1.01 can determine primary and secondary PM2.5 emissions (PM2.5, NOx, NH3, and SO2) and assess health impacts and costs of passenger transport by road, water and rail in Thailand. The calculator consists of primary and secondary PM2.5 emission inventory (for passenger transport), city-specific characterisation factors, and health cost conversion factor. The details of emission inventory, impact characterisation and economic valuation can be seen the background report of PM2.5 Footprint Calculator v1.01 (Prapaspongsa et al., 2021). Features of the current version and future updates of the PM2.5 footprint calculator are also documented in the report. The PM2.5 Footprint Calculator v1.01 is provided in two versions including Web-Based PM2.5 Footprint Calculator and PM2.5 Footprint Calculator (Microsoft Excel Program). Users can directly apply the Web-Based PM2.5 Footprint Calculator via this PM2.5 footprint website or download the PM2.5 Footprint Calculator (Microsoft Excel Program) from this website for own calculations. The Web-Based PM2.5 Footprint Calculator computes the health impacts and costs from "well-to-wheel" including emissions from upstream fuel and electricity production; and exhaust emissions from fuel combustion. The PM2.5 Footprint Calculator (Microsoft Excel Program) can assess health impacts and costs both from "well-to-wheel" and "tank-to-wheel”. In the tank-to-wheel scope, the exhaust emissions from fuel combustion (indicated as "vehicle use" in this excel) are considered.

Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital has launched an innovative rapid COVID-19 antigen test kit that can provide an accurate result within 15 minutes at an affordable price and easy-to-use. The technology to manufacture and distribute was provided by AFFINOME CO., Ltd., the only Thai manufacturer in 24 lists approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

-