“We may think of the Antarctic as a remote and pristine wilderness. But from pollution and climate change to industrial krill fishing, humanity’s footprint is clear,” said Frida Bengtsson, who is in charge of Greenpeace’s Protect the Antarctic campaign.

“These results show that even the most remote habitats of the Antarctic are contaminated with microplastic waste and persistent hazardous chemicals. We need to stop these pollutants ending up in the Antarctic in the first place. We need an Antarctic Ocean Sanctuary to give space for penguins, whales and the entire ecosystem to recover from the pressures they’re facing.”

The samples were gathered during a three-month Greenpeace expedition to the Antarctic from January to March. Seven of the eight sea-surface water samples tested contained microplastic.

In addition, nine samples were taken using a manta trawl and analysed for microplastics. Microplastic fragments were detected in two samples. Seven of the nine snow samples tested contained detectable concentrations of the persistent chemicals per- and polyfluorinated alkylated substances, or PFASs, which are widely used in many industrial processes and consumer products and have been linked to reproductive and developmental issues in wildlife.

The snow samples gathered included freshly fallen snow, suggesting the hazardous chemicals were deposited from the atmosphere. There are relatively few data for microplastics in Antarctic waters, and this analysis provides valuable new information on the presence and status of such contamination in the region.

“We saw all kinds of waste from the fishing industry down in the Antarctic,” Bengtsson continued. “Buoys, nets and tarpaulins drifted in between icebergs, which was really sad to see. We took them out of the water, but it really made clear to me how we need to put vast parts of this area off-limits to human activity if we’re going to protect the Antarctic’s incredible wildlife.”

“Plastic has now been found in all corners of oceans, from the Antarctic to the Arctic and at the deepest point of the ocean, the Mariana Trench. We need urgent action to reduce the flow of plastic into our seas and we need large scale marine reserves – like a huge Antarctic Ocean Sanctuary which over 1.6 million people are calling for – to protect marine life and our oceans for future generations.”

Greenpeace is conducting scientific research, including landmark submarine dives to little-known Antarctic seabed ecosystems, as part of a campaign to create an Antarctic Ocean Sanctuary.

At 1.8 million square kilometres, it would be five times the size of Germany and the largest protected area on Earth. The sanctuary is being proposed by the EU and a decision will be taken at the forthcoming meeting of the Antarctic Ocean Commission (CCAMLR) in October.

TWO YEARS in the making, the world’s first Line indoor theme park opened last Friday in downtown Bangkok, allowing fans of the characters seen in the popular chat application to interact with their favourites in both a virtual reality world and in real-time themed photo rooms.

Called Line Village Bangkok, the Bt500-million project occupies 1,500sqm over three-storeys at Siam Square One Building, opposite Siam Paragon. The theme park completes the Line Friends store, which was opened last year to sell official merchandise.

The gigantic cute bear Choco wais customers at the front door.

Eleven of the main Line characters who make regular appearances on the chat stickers live in the new house and invite visitors into their rooms. Here you can spend time in Brown’s bedroom, Cony’s kitchen, Moon’s rooftop room, Boss’ office and Choco’s cheerful pad. Every spot demands a selfie while virtual reality and physical games provide the immersive experience.

Line’s most popular character, Brown the brown bear, waits to welcome his fans at his room in Line Village Bangkok.

“Like most Thais, the first thing I do when I wake up is grab my phone and check Line. The Line characters have become our friends. And Thais also love taking photos so Line Village Bangkok is a perfect match for today’s lifestyle,” says Rupop Shinawatra who is licensed by Seoul-based Line Friends Corp to run Line Village and serves as chief executive.

The Line application has users in more than 230 countries and territories. Line Thailand says 42 million of the 45 million Thais with mobile Internet use it – making Thailand the second-largest market in the world after Japan. Research conducted by Line Thailand also shows that Thais spend an average of 216 minutes a day on their smartphones, and 63 of those minutes are devoted to Line.

The mysterious library

“Bangkok is very poorly served compared to Japan, which has plenty of tourist attractions like Disney Land, Universal Studio and Lego Land. Line Village Bangkok has the potential to become a new business model for Line Friends Corp. The company’s insisted on the venue being in the prime shopping area of Bangkok and the space here fits that criterion. The target is social media users aged between 15 and 40, both Thai and tourists, and we expect to draw 12 million visitors a year,” he says.

The secret steps

Line Village is set up along a one-way route with 23 spots to check out. After passing the tunnel, the mysterious library and the secret steps, the most popular character – the brown bear called simply Brown – welcomes visitors to his bedroom, a cool space decked out with books and boxing and karate paraphernalia – in a nod to his favourite sports. Visitors can sit next to the larger-than-life figure of Brown on his sofa and take selfies with the bear who always wears the same unruffled expression.

The cheerful rabbit Cony invites everyone to her culinary world. 

As the adorable female rabbit Cony loves cooking, visitors can hang out in her kitchen, which has loads of utensils and fitting as well as digital cooking games. Like his name, Moon – the anthropomorphic alien who is passionate about the galaxy – wears a space suit and hangs out in his rooftop room surrounded by rockets, stars and telescopes.

The stubborn and adventurous Moon shares his passion for the galaxy in his rooftop room.

“We’ve worked closely with Line headquarters in South Korea to ensure that every character and style and all content precisely matches the brand identity,” says Rupop. “The graphics, the colour code and the proportions of each character, as well as the props, and the digital and physical games are carefully conceived. All items are exclusively produced for us. Though there are 45 Line Friends stores and cafes in major cities around the world, this theme park is the first.”

The self-centred James opens up his luxurious room to visitors.

Narcissistic blond James lives in a room decorated with self-portraits and luxurious high-backed sofas, inviting visitors to sit and get close to him. Boss, a bald, pot-bellied man who is of course a boss, is found in his office decked out with glass cabinets filled with accessories like wristwatches, sunglasses, hats, perfume bottles, cameras and pens.

The strict and sneaky Boss keeps an eye on you from his office.

The new character Choco, who represents the social media-savvy, fashion-conscious young woman, has a pink room furnished with a wardrobe filled with fashionable items and a dressing table covered with the trendiest cosmetics.

“The different Line characters are cleverly designed to match different people’s style,” Rupop adds.

“The mood and tone and even the music are customised to match each character. The cheerful Cony comes with a fun beat and the sound in Choco’s room recalls the runway vibe. Boss’s office boasts the James Bond’s theme song.”

 Choco’s house is dominated by fashionable items.

First introduced in 2011, the Line sticker characters were an instant hit. They’re fun to send and receive and fit into the daily routine. They are also the stars of collectible items, animated films, games and cafes. Line Thailand reckons that about 500 million sticker sets were downloaded last year. On average, it adds, every single person using Line in this country owns 15 sets.

Visitors can join the virtual reality rollercoaster ride with the Line gang.

Another highlight in Line Village is a virtual reality rollercoaster ride, developed with Samsung Electronics, for which visitors don VR headsets and join the adventurous ride with the Line gang. Two selfie machines allow visitors to capture their pictures in video format and decorate them with animated Line characters. They can be shared instantly on social media.

The selfie machine allows fans to play with animated characters and share the photos on social media.

A dim mirrored room is filled with 100 white illuminated Brown dolls in various sizes that are reflected thousands of times. The final mirror room has the animated characters popping up everywhere and the mirror is specially designed not to give a reflection when you’re taking pictures.

Illuminated white Brown dolls are endlessly reflected in the mirror.

“Line always updates its characters to match the changing lifestyles of people. Line Village, too, can adjust the digital content, the mood and tone and the props so that visitors can come back to enjoy new exciting experiences,” he says.

Line recently turned the bear Brown into a hip-hop DJ, a skateboarder and even a dino to appeal to the growing segment of young customers.

Brown, the hip-hop DJ

“Like my kids, I personally like the cunning chick Sally because she’s cute and also the main character Brown thanks to his calm personality,” says Rupop.

Visitors will also go home with an exclusive set of stickers that are available to download to their mobile devices. The motion stickers have Brown and his paws dressed in Thai traditional costumes and performing a wai. Another shows them riding in a tuk-tuk. The sticker set will change every six months.

The mirror room has animated characters in every corner. 

The last spot, of course, is the store and it’s now filled with more than 2,000 items, from clothing and stationery to dolls and accessories. Also on sale are goods produced in collaboration with world-famous brands, among them a Lamy fountain pen, Swarovski necklace, Moleskine notebook, Be@rbrick doll, and Thermos water bottle. Limited-edition items available exclusively in Thailand are a wai’ing Brown doll and the whole gang in their tuk-tuk.

Line Friends store

BEAR NECESSITIES

Line Village Bangkok opens daily from 10 to 10 at Siam Square One.

Admission is Bt850 for Thai adults and Bt990 for non-Thais. Thai children pay Bt650 while foreign kids are charged Bt790. Kids under 90 centimetres in height get in for free.

Tickets are available at the door or online at http://www.LineVillageBangkok.com.

For details, call (095) 503 6666.

Montessori, the school system that provides a child-centred approach to education, woos parents of preschool children with the Montessori Preschool app from Edoki Academy.

Available for iPad or iPhone, the learning tool covers colours, shapes, phonics, reading, counting, addition, subtraction and music.

The number of lessons on the free app is limited and parents wanting to take it further will need to pay a monthly or annual subscription to get full access.

The app is designed by certified Montessori teachers with years of classroom experience. The fun child-centred app is divided in four subjects: Maths, Early Literacy, Arts and Practical Life.

The app allows the child to play mini-games, interact with cute avatars and customise his or school using the points earned while playing.

The Maths curriculum covers learning to count, recognising numbers and tracing them from zero to 1 million. An introduction to addition and subtraction using Montessori materials is also available.

For example, in one lesson, a fairy tells the child to touch a castle and says one castle.

In the Early Literacy section, your kid will be exposed to sounds, which will train their ears to identify the sounds before giving them a name. In the Sandbox activity, the little one will hear how each letter sounds. When he or she taps letter “A”, the app will pronounce it.

In the Initial Sound activity, the game lets the child touch a picture and hear the word then select the letter with which the word starts.

The Arts class includes an introduction to colours (primary and secondary) as well as many games using colours and shapes. It also offers music games to discover pitches, rhythm and nursery rhymes.

In the Busy Shapes and Colours activity, the child can drag a circle, square, triangle to the correct hollow frame and hear their name read out.

The free version also provides a colouring book.

A fun song in the Interactive Wheels on the Bus activity invites the child to learn and play along with the nursery rhyme in the free version. For example, the song starts with “the wheels on the bus go round and round”. The child must touch the left front and left back wheel to earn stars and the song will move to the next rhyme.

In the Practical Life, your kid will find a range of activities like dusting, taking care of plants, cleaning a mirror or washing clothes. Montessori Preschool welcomes users in a digital school with lockers, a corridor full of daily responsibilities or discoveries.

In the free-activity School Infirmary, children will learn about basic first aid in school. And in the Chinese Classroom, which is also provided in the free version, your kid will learn Chinese words, such learning to count from one to 10 in Chinese and see how each number is written in the language.

I tried the app on an iPad Pro 10-inch and it played smoothly.

The app is free and the monthly subscription is Bt99 while the annual subscription is Bt699.

Key facts:

– Seller: Edoki Academy

– Size: 651.2 MB

– Category: Education

– Compatibility: Requires iOS 9.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad and iPod touch and Apple TV.

– Languages: English

– Age Rating: Rated 4+

– Price: Free

It is powered by Class D amplifier with 2×12 watts of power and it uses two 50mm full-range drivers and two bass radiators for powerful bass response. It has a 3.5mm stereoin jack apart from Bluetooth connection. It retails for Bt16,900.

Stay amazingly fit

Xiaomi MI Amazfit Bip is a fitness smartwatch that comes with a 1.28-inch LCD with 176×176 pixels, plus GPS for running and biking. It also has heart-rate sensor and will pass on alerts from a connected phone. It retails for Bt2,299 in the Xiaomi store on Lazada.

Try a French phone

View Max, a new smartphone from French firm Wiko Mobile, comes with a 5.99-inch display in 18:9 ratio in 1440×720 pixels and a large battery capacity of 4,000mAh. It is powered by a 1.3GHz quadcore processor and has 3GB of RAM and 32GB of storage. It also has a 13-megapixel rear camera and a 5MP front camera. It has Face Unlock and a finger-print reader for added security. It retails for Bt3,890.

Safer headphones from AT

Audio-Technica Sport-70BT Bluetooth headphones have sweat and water protection certified with IPX5. The control and microphone allow you to operate music and hear surrounding sound without removing the headphones from your ears, for outdoor safety. The battery supports up to six hours of continual use. Available in black and rose-gold for Bt4,990.

Be a rock star

Dreamwave RockStar is a portable Bluetooth speaker for parties. It has 80 watts of power and comes with a  26,000mAh battery that supports up to 12 hours of audio playback. It also has DSP for karaoke. It can handle up to 8 audio inputs. It retails for Bt24,900.

Probike, one of Thailand’s leading bike and accessory distributors, gets into competition cycling with the inaugural Classique Duathlon 2018 taking place next month in Suphan Buri.

The town, which is often referred to as the City of Gold and also City of Sports, is hosting the event at its Provincial Stadium on July 21 and 22.

Is a duathlon a step below the triathlon?

“We wouldn’t say it like that,” says Natee Chaisinthop, marketing executive of Probike.

“This event is very challenging. A cyclist can ride 120 kilometres but can’t run five kilometres. Likewise, a runner can do a marathon but can’t ride 30 kilometres. Exercise helps us survive any emergency and it’s known to be good for people suffering from panic disorders and anxiety.”

For this first event, the duathlon has its own motto – “Challenging Never Ends”, which Natee says means “everybody must be happy and safe.”

“It’s our dream to build a sports culture in this country,” he says, “We have been in the business for 28 years and have always promoted the challenges and enjoyment of this alternative sport. Most importantly, it helps us to make friends easily. So now, we’re organising a duathlon and encouraging cyclists to challenge their limits.

“We have organised many bike events over the last 28 years including the ‘Probike Family Day’, which had as its slogan ‘Together We Make a Family.’ By ‘family’ we don’t just mean people who are related but all cyclists. We also held the Probike 24 Hours MTB Race, the Probike MTB Challenge in Sattahip and Century Ride, which has now been held more than 50 times and draws large families with lots of kids. This time, we are offering a challenging and safe experience under the rules of the International Triathlon Union.

Natee says Probike selected Suphan Buri as the venue because of its reputation as a city of sports. “The roads are very wide,” he points out.

Probike has chosen to collaborate on the event with Suphan Buri Football Club.

“Suphan Buri doesn’t have any hills – just five flyovers that are considerably smaller than hills. But we see an increasing number of people coming to the stadium to exercise, whether running, cycling, skateboarding or playing futsal,” says Warawut Silpa-archa, son of Chart Thai Pattana’s late party leader Banharn and president of the Suphan Buri Football Club.

The duathlon is divided into four groups for men – 18 years and up, 30-39 years old, 40-49 years old and 50 and over, and two groups for women – 18 years and up and 30 plus. All bicycles are accepted except folding bikes and fatbikes.

The event will also feature a Probike Mini Expo at the stadium offering bikes and sports gear at bargain prices, food trucks and sponsor zones. Proceeds from sales will go to charity.

Pedal power

– The Probike Classique Duathlon 2018 is limited just 500 participants.

– Registration costs Bt3,000 and should be made at https://RideRight.probike.co.th.

A new pair of headphones from premium manufacturer Audio-Technica, the ATH-ANC700BT come with QuietPoint Wireless Active Noise-Cancelling technology, which allows you to enjoy listening to music even in the nosiest of environments.

The default is set to the noise cancelling function when you turn on the Bluetooth headphones but can switched off simply by covering the touch panel on the left ear cup with your left hand. You repeat the process to turn them back on.

The ANC700BT is designed to use its built-in microphone to pick up noise from the surrounding environment, like the sound of vehicles and the hum of the air conditioner, then cancel out that noise by producing sounds in a negative phase. This results in a reduction in the sounds in your environment. The product’s noise-cancelling function mainly reduces noises of 300 Hz or lower. Because of this, it has almost no effect on noises above that frequency, such as ringtones or someone speaking.

During the test, I found the headphones gave me a quiet listening environment in my bedroom, effectively shielding off the loud humming of my air-conditioner.

However, used in Bluetooth mode, the phones do not support High-Resolution Audio sounds because they lack Hi-Res Audio Bluetooth streaming formats of either LDAC or aptX HD. Instead, they support Bluetooth streaming codecs of aptX, AAC and SBC.

Despite that, the sound quality is good with excellent clarity and powerful bass. The phones use 40mm drivers and have a high sensitivity of 98dB when the battery-powered noise-cancellation is used. The sensitivity drops to 95dB when the noise-cancellation is turned off. The ANC700BT has impedance of 150 ohms when the noise-cancellation is used or 35 ohms without.

The headphones also have good battery life, lasting up to 25 hours when both Bluetooth and noise cancellation are turned on. When only the Bluetooth is used, the battery can last up to 30 hours.

I was able to enjoy Hi-Res Audio signals on the ANC700BT with a provided 1.2-metre detachable audio cable. The headphones have a frequency response of 5 to 40,000 Hz.

I found that when the headphones were used with cable in Hi-Res Audio mode, the sound quality was great with very good music details and a deep and powerful bass. In wire mode, I was able to turn on the power switch on the left ear cup allowing me to use only the noise cancellation function to enjoy high-quality sound in a quiet environment.

Another nice feature in Bluetooth mode is that the phones provide a touch panel on the left ear cup for controlling music playback and talking on the phone.

For example, while listening to music, you can touch the Audio-Technica logo in the middle of the left ear cup to play or pause the music. You hold it for a little longer to activate the speech recognition function, such as Siri.

You can touch the top part of the left ear cup to increase the volume and the bottom part to decrease the volume.

You swipe the touch panel down to play the previous track and swipe up it up to play the next track. I tried this with the JOOX music app and it worked well.

To take an incoming call to the smartphone connected to ANC700BT, simply touch the middle of the touch panel to answer it. You can also touch and hold it for two seconds to reject it and if you want to hang up during the call just touch in again. Increasing and decreasing the phone volume works the same way as for playing music.

The headphones are light and comfortable so I was able to wear them for hours on end. The ANC700BT comes with a foldable design and a carrying pouch is provided, so you can conveniently carry them around with you.

Audio-Technica ATH-ANC700BT is distributed by RTB Technology with a suggested retail price of Bt7,990.

Key Specs

– Driver Diameter: 40 mm

– Frequency Response: 5 – 40,000 Hz

– Sensitivity: 98 dB/mW (when noise-cancellation used); 95 dB/mW (when noise-cancellation not used)

– Impedance: 150 ohms (when noise-cancellation used); 35 ohms (when noise-cancellation not used)*

– Battery: DC3.7 V lithium polymer rechargeable battery

– Battery Life: Maximum 25 hours (when Bluetooth and noise-cancellation used); Maximum 45 hours (when only noise-cancellation used)

– Charging Time: Approximately 5 hours (for 0100% charge)

– Weight: 250 g without cable

– Cable: Detachable 1.2 m cable

– Connector: 3.5 mm stereo mini-plug, L-shaped

– Accessories Included: 30 cm USB charging cable, protective pouch

– Microphone: Condenser

– Sensitivity (Microphone): 44 dB (1V/Pa at 1 kHz)

– Frequency Response (Microphone): 50 – 4,000 Hz

– Polar Pattern (Microphone): Omni-directional

– Communication System: Bluetooth Version 4.1

– RF Output: 3.2 mW EIRP

– Output: Bluetooth Specification Power Class 2

– Maximum Communication Range: Line of sight – approximately 10 metres

– Compatible Bluetooth Profiles: A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, HSP

– Support Codec: aptX, AAC, SBC

The fair, which takes place at Siam Paragon’s Fashion Hall from Thursday (June 14) through June 17, also features a workshop on pagakayaw fabric.

Khunying Suchada Kiranandana, chairmwoman of the Phufa Working Committee, says Phufa Day 2018 is the greatest sale of the year and will feature a range of products from handwoven blankets and handkerchiefs, to pagakayaw shawls, silk, patek fabric, batik, loincloths, piggy banks made from coconut shells as well as clothing and accessories sporting Princess Sirindhorn’s paintings such as polo shirts, T-shirts, canvas bags, pens, glasses, flasks, notebooks, watches, towels, umbrellas and hats. The event aims to thanks Phufa’s customers for their support.

Income from the shops is spent on improving the quality of life of people in remote areas by creating various careers and providing educational support, while also launching lunch programmes for school children and novices. Over the past six years, more than Bt149 million has been spent on supporting these.

The products selected for this fair include items for the household and cloth bags made of patek fabric crafted by a group of Muslim women in the South including the Baanbike Village occupational development group in Yala and the Bann I-Buetae group in Narathiwat, both of which are supported under the Royal project.

The handwoven cotton known as pagakayaw gets its name from the ethnic groups living in the highlands of Tak province and Chiang Mai. Products include bags, key rings, tissue boxes and cloth dolls.

Also on sale are herbal teas with medicinal qualities such as bitter gourd, lemongrass, pandan leaves, grass sprouts, bael and ginger made by villagers from Chachoengsao and Nan. All the herbs are grown without the use of chemical substances and adopt the highest sanitary standard for processing.

Keep up with the news at Facebook: PHUFA, http://www.phufa.org or call (02) 655 62423.

While more research is needed before the test is ready for widespread use, experts say it has the potential to reduce fatalities and complications from the 15 million premature births per year worldwide.

The test can also be used to estimate the mother’s due date “as reliably as and less expensively than ultrasound,” said the report in the journal Science.

The test measures the activity of maternal, placental and fetal genes, assessing levels of cell-free RNA, which are messenger molecules that carry the body’s genetic instructions.

“We found that a handful of genes are very highly predictive of which women are at risk for preterm delivery,” said co-senior author Mads Melbye, a visiting professor at Stanford University and CEO of the Statens Serum Institut in Copenhagen.

“I’ve spent a lot of time over the years working to understand preterm delivery. This is the first real, significant scientific progress on this problem in a long time.”

Another top researcher was Stephen Quake, professor of bioengineering and of applied physics at Stanford University, who led a team that created a blood test for Down syndrome in 2008 — now used in more than three million pregnant women per year.

Defined as a baby arriving at least three weeks early, premature birth affects nine percent of US births and is the top cause of death before age five among children worldwide.

Until now, some tests for predicting premature birth were available but they tended to work only in women at high risk, and were accurate only about 20 percent of the time, according to the report.

To develop the test, researchers examined blood samples from 31 Danish women to identify which genes gave reliable signals about gestational age and prematurity risk.

After more research is done and the test eventually comes to market, researchers say it will likely be simple and inexpensive enough to use in poor areas.

The 19th Korea Mice Expo (KME), South Korea’s largest tradeshow for incentive planners and meeting professionals, will be held at the Songdo Convensia in Incheon on June 14 and 15.

The event will provide 2,000 industry professionals a chance to meet 300 exhibiting local service providers, including convention bureaux, unique venues and travel agencies.

To foster a business-friendly event, this year’s expo will ditch the usual sitdown gala dinner and forums.

“We want it to be bigger and more meaningful for all participants,” says Chulbeum Park, director of the Korea Tourism Organisation Meetings & Incentives Team.

A standing networking party will replace the usual gala dinner to let guests interact freely. Also, convention bureaux will showcase not only their MICE expertise but also their local food specialities during the reception.

For the first time, the expo will have a theme – “Hallyu meets MICE” – offering participants new venues, activities and discussions related to popular Korean films, dramas and music.

One highlight will be the opening keynote by Ahn Soowook, executive director of SM Entertainment, one of the leading showbiz groups in South Korea.

He will discuss ways to incorporate hallyu (Korean wave) in the MICE industry.

The expo will also introduce new programmes, such as Destination Presentations, a Knowledge Cafe and Young MICE Professionals booth, cultural performances and tours of popular destinations.

“Korea has become a favoured destination for incentive travel, especially for groups coming from Southeast Asia,” says Baeho Kim, acting executive director of Korea MICE Bureau.

“The increasing number of groups returning is testament that the country has an infinite selection of places and activities that are able to please varying preferences.”

The number of returning incentive visitors to Korea in 2017 grew by 24 per cent from the previous year, with 240 groups carrying 36,720 delegates.

Since 2000, the Korea MICE Expo has been the sole national MICE exhibition, enlivening the industry, fostering specialists and strengthening marketing competitiveness.

The industry has achieved an unprecedented pace of development over the last 10 years, and the exposition offers an international stage to verified potential, not just in Korea but around the world.

With more than 250 MICE service agencies and 300 qualified buyers, you can seek up-to-date trends and vision at the Korea MICE Expo.

The Korea Tourism Organisation invites event professionals to attend the expo. Email mice@knto.or.kr.

Find out more about the KMB support programme at http://www.KoreaConvention.org.

Princess Sirindhorn was warmly greeted on her arrival by representatives from Ramathibodi Foundation and the Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital including Emeritus Prof Dr. Kasem Watanachai, Prof Rachata Rachatanawin, Prof Piyamitr Sritara, Khunying Wanna Sirivadhanabhakdi, Khunying Jada Wattanasiritham and Emeritus Prof Termsak Krishnamara.

After the meeting, Princess Sirindhorn inspected the country’s biggest “Healing Rooftop Garden” located on the 10th floor of the hospital.

Prof Piyamitr Sritara, dean of the Faculty of Medicine and president of the Ramathibodi Foundation, reaffirmed the hospital’s commitment to continually increasing efficiency and being the main force in the development of the country’s healthcare service. He spoke of the mega project that aims to raise standard and increase capacity of medical service as well as produce new medical staff – the Chakri Naruebodindra Medical Institute (CNMI), which opened at the end of last year. When operating at full capacity, the CNMI will be able to take 1 million outpatients and 17,000 inpatients per year.

“Moreover, Ramathibodi Hospital plans to open the country’s mid-town ‘Therapeutic Roof Garden’, which is part of our determination to build a truly Green hospital. This garden, which is supported by the Ramathibodi Foundation on the concept ‘Man-healing garden, City-healing garden’, has been built by resurfacing the 10th floor of the Somdech Phra Debaratana Medical Centre. Turning the hard surface into a green space will help absorb rain and heat, thus decreasing the temperature inside the building and purifying the air,” he said.

“This garden is the prototype of holistic treatment and will see ecotherapy being used as part of the healing process as well as for social activities and relaxation.

Asst Prof Supatara Leelapiwat, secretary and executive director of the foundation said: “For more than 49 years, we have served as a fund-raising centre both through donations and sales of souvenirs. We have received generous support from government and private organisations, as well as from the artists who volunteer. They all contribute to the treatment of more than 2 million patients per year through our projects, which include assistance to poor patients, procurement of medical equipment such as Thailand’s first robot for brain surgery, a hybrid surgery room for patients with complicated illnesses that make them unsuited to conventional surgery, as well as medical research and development and the construction of this Therapeutic Roof Garden.

The 1,500-square-metre garden boasts a flower room, a multi-purpose space decorated with paintings of flowers and kanpai Mahidol (the plant that serves as the symbol of Mahidol University) and a pergola, a shaded tunnel walkway and shelter that can serve up to 200 people.

The Recycle Wall has been created from more than 700 recycled saline bags as a plant wall, while the Aroma Garden and Braille Railing are used for therapeutic purposes. The walkway is designed to help gait training and is filled with different sizes of pebbles to alternate weights while walking, and handrails for the blind are covered with the Braille code of the poem “Love Song”, which was written by Princess Sirindhorn.

There is also an urban farming, plant and herb study area for students and others supported by the Faculty of Pharmacy, Mahidol University and a Healing Circle Amphitheatre for holding small to medium sized shows and performances.

Ramathibodi Hospital’s Therapeutic Roof Garden will open soon. This garden is considered a new dimension of sustainable healthcare supported by nature.