Building upon the momentum for innovation with community engagement that the eBKF has created for UNIMAS over the years, the 8th eBKF which was held on-line in October 2021, and in conjunction with UNIMAS 30th Anniversary, it is now to run as an annual event. The 9th eBKF in 2022 will be a hybrid virtual/physical event to be run from Bario, Sarawak. This will exploit the dual advantages of greatly facilitated attendance by participants overseas as well as those unable to travel and will simultaneously promote involvement of local communities and indigenous peoples (LCIPs) in the region, which has been acknowledged as a key determinant of success for the event.

The theme for eBKF9 is Climate Change, Sustainable Biodiversity and Indigenous Knowledge on the island of Borneo. This builds upon two of the SDGs: SDG#13 for urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts and SDG#15 which upholds the need to sustainably manage forests and halt biodiversity loss, eBKF9 builds on a recent shift in the relationship between science and other systems of knowledge, reflected in the explicit recognition of indigenous knowledge in many global environmental governance forums, UNESCO refers to local and indigenous knowledge as the understandings, skills, and philosophies developed by societies with long histories of interaction with their natural surroundings. Understanding indigenous knowledge of weather, long-term observations of environmental change, and community-based strategies for resilience are essential in the face of a changing and increasingly unpredictable climate. Indigenous knowledge contributes to a broader understanding of the changes occurring, as well as the responses required for effective adaptation.

Synergy between what is construed as scientific knowledge and Traditional Ecological knowledge (TEK) can therefore play a positive role in sustaining biodiversity and nature's services, and may, given time and space, sustain the cultural and economic norms of an indigenous community. These knowledge systems can be complementary, and it is therefore desirable to promote further interaction between them. Such interaction will surely be facilitated through the sympathetic application of technological solutions, especially Information and Communication Technologies, such as those that have found beneficial applications among eBKF partner communities since its inception 15 years ago.

Bario is a remote rural community located in Malaysian Borneo, situated close to the Sarawak (Malaysian) and Kalimantan (Indonesian) borders. The word "Bario" means "wind" in the Kelabit language. Bario often referred to as the "land of a hundred handshakes" to reflect the friendliness of the local community.

Flying to Bario on a 19-seater Viking plane operated by MASwings is the most convenient way to get there. Other means of access include a journey by land via a 14 to 18 hour journey by 4WD on a logging road from Miri, the nearest urban centre.

Bario comprises of about thirteen villages in and around the area, which are home to more than 1,000 people. The majority of the Bario population are Kelabits, one of the smallest ethnic groups in Sarawak. The Kelabits in Bario are predominantly farmers, planting the fragrant and famous Bario rice. One of the famous festivals celebrated in Bario is called Pesta Nukenen, also known as the Bario Food Festival, which celebrates the unique food, farming, and cultural heritage of the Highlands.