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Termites are considered by the general public as pests, but their presence can be a bioindicator of environmental quality. This is because termites have a functional role as Soil Ecosystem Engginers. Alas Bromo University Forest has various stands that can influence the presence of soil macrofauna, one of which is termites. The aim of the research was to examine the functional role of termites in improving soil fertility, which was conducted in six different Alas Bromo stand areas (Pinus 1973, Pinus 2016, Pinus 1994, Pinus 2001, Mahogany 1973, and Mahogany 1949). The method used in this study is the installation of stakes as bait to determine the presence of termites in a plot measuring 20m x 20m and the distance between stakes is 4 meters. There are 5 damage classes (0, 1, 2, 3, and 4) that reflect the presence of termites. The higher the damage class, the higher the activity and presence of termites. The observation parameters taken include, Average Damage Class of stakes in each observation, Soil C-organic, and soil N-Total. The results showed that the highest termite activity was found in Pinus 1973 and Mahogany 1973 stands, while the lowest termite activity was found in Pinus 1994 and Pinus 2016 stands. This can be caused by more suitable environmental conditions and denser crowns. The results also showed that there were differences in C-organic and N-total values in each damage class. The highest C-organic and N-total values were produced in damage class 4 (1.58% and 1.53%). In contrast, C-organic values were lower in the other classes: damage class 1 (1.12%), damage class 0 (1.15%), damage class 2 (1.20%), and damage class 3 (1.25%). Similarly, N-total values were lowest in damage class 1 (0.95%), damage class 2 (1.01%), damage class 0 (1.03%), and damage class 3 (1.13%). This research shows that the presence and activity of termites have a positive correlation with soil fertility, this can be seen from the increase in soil C-organic and N-total at higher damage classes.

Indonesia has high biodiversity and is well-known for its medicinal plant diversity, which is both singular and globally affluent. Due to their secondary metabolite efficacy for various ailments; medicinal plants are commercially and highly useful to human. Secondary metabolites assure the plant from abiotic and biotic stressors and aid pollination and fruit distribution. However, the changing climate, deforestation, population growth, overharvesting and the unsustainable manner of medicinal plant collection for trade, may drive many populations extinct. The study aimed to review some climate change effects on Indonesian medicinal plants as potential medicine sources for discovery and human being development. By reviewing with emphasis how each of the individual factors affects the growth, development and plant secondary metabolites production. This review illustrates a common figure of environmental factors such as temperature, drought, and CO2 that affect Indonesia’s medicinal plants. It is evident that climate change is having a detrimental influence on existing resources’ life cycles, medicinal plant quality and production, habitat fragmentation, shifting distribution ranges, phenology pattern changes, etc. Compared to other commercial crops, medicinal plant research on climate change is infrequent and limited. The study suggests some different adaptive techniques be used to mitigate climatic challenges and preserve medicinal plants.

Climate change has a significant impact on crop failure and agricultural production. To overcome this issue, fertilization strategy is needed to increase plant growth. Magnesium Sulphate (MgSO4) role in photosynthesis, enzyme activation, and synergism with other nutrients plays big part in increasing plant growth and harvest. Complementing NPK fertilizing with MgSO4 can be a solution to fulfill nutrient needs with lower input and higher effectivity. This study aims to find best formula of MgSO4 complementing NPK fertilizer in improving shallot growth. Experimental method was conducted using Randomized Complete Group Design (RCBD) with 9 treatments and 3 replications, namely: control, standard NPK (Urea 250 kg ha-1, SP-20 130 kg ha-1, and KCL 60 kg ha-1), MgSO4 (300 kg ha-1), and six combinations of MgSO4 with NPK. The results showed that application of MgSO4 combined with NPK fertilizer significantly increases the growth of shallots. The addition of 300 kg ha-1 of MgSO4 with 3/4 doses of NPK fertilizer effectively increased shallot growth as indicated by the highest plant height, number of leaves, and number of tillers.

Climate change-induced heat stress poses a significant threat to global soybean production. This study investigated the impact of heat stress on growth and physiological parameters of 18 Indonesian soybean varieties at the seedling stage. Treatments involved exposing two-week-old seedlings to temperatures 25, 30, 35, 40 and 45°C for four hours daily over four consecutive days. The parameters assessed were survival rate, root length, shoot length, total plant weight, and relative water content. Results revealed significant variability in heat stress tolerance among varieties. While all varieties showed optimal growth at 25°C, increasing temperatures from 25 to 30°C led to an increase in growth. A critical threshold was observed between 35 and 40°C, where most varieties experienced a sharp performance decline. Notably, varieties Demas 1, Gepak Kuning, and Agromulyo consistently outperformed others even at 45°C where all other couldn’t survive, maintaining higher survival rates and better growth parameters even under severe stress conditions. This study provides valuable insights into soybean heat stress tolerance mechanisms and identifies promising genetic resources for breeding heat-resilient cultivars in Indonesia. Our findings contribute to the development of strategies to mitigate the impacts of climate change on soybean production, crucial for ensuring global food security in the face of rising temperatures.

The massive influx of Rohingya refugees to Bangladesh from Myanmar in August 2017, impelled the government of Bangladesh to clear thousands of acres of forestland in Ukhia and Teknaf sub-districts to allow their accommodation. Subsequently, the refugees also cut down trees thus resulting in rapid deforestation in that region. Recently, however, the Rohingya refugees in collaboration with UNHCR, have undertaken a massive tree plantation project. In this study, we calculated a Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) using remote sensing data in the Ukhia sub-district to analyze changes that occurred in the years following the 2017 influx and evaluated the effectiveness of the reforestation effort. After calculating the NDVI, we found that there was an implication of a slight increase in vegetation. The results show that the total area of vegetation coverage in February, 2017 was 215 square kilometers and in 2019 it had gone down to 197.92 and by 2023 it had recovered to 235 square kilometers. Thus, we can conclude that the reforestation process should be continued as the changes will become more visible. As Bangladesh is highly vulnerable to climate change, continued deforestation will only aggravate the situation and thus this raises the importance of reforestation.

Forest observation to use soil moisture meters for monitoring soil moisture are still relatively inefficient if done on very large land because it still relies on relatively much energy and requires a long time. This study aims to determine the accuracy of the use of aerial photographs from the Red-Green-Blue (RGB) camera Drone to estimate soil moisture levels. Aerial photographs were analyzed with the ImageJ application to find digital numbers, and actual soil moisture measurements by the gypsum block method. Soil moisture and digital numbers are then analyzed by regression and correlation. The results show that this method has a low accuracy. However, the comparison between the actual soil moisture and the soil moisture from the prediction doesn’t show a significant difference. The accuracy of the estimation depends on the camera settings and the weather, so further calibration and testing are necessary if used under different conditions.

Fuel stability is one of major problem in biodiesel application. Some of the physical properties of biodiesel are commonly changed during storage. The change in physico-chemical properties is strongly correlated to the stability of the fuel. This study is objected to observe the potential materials for biodiesel storage. The test was conducted in three kinds of tank materials, such as glass, HDPE, and stainless steel. The fuel properties are monitored in 12 weeks, while the sample was analyzed every week. Biodiesel used is palm oil based. The storage tanks were placed in a confined indoor space with range of temperature 27–34 °C. The relative humidity and sunshine duration on the location was also evaluated. The observed properties of the fuel blends were density, viscosity and water content. During 12 weeks of storage, the average density of B20 was changed very slightly in all tanks, while the viscosity was tend to increase sharply, especially in polimerics tank. Water content of B20 was increased by the increase of storage time especially in HDPE tank. In short period of storage, the biodiesel blends is found more stable in glass tank due to its versatility to prohibit oxidation, degradation, and its chemical resistance.