Her Excellency the Right Honourable Patricia Scotland, Commonwealth Secretary General delivered a public lecture at the Senate Room of the Chancellor Hall, Universiti Brunei Darussalam (UBD) on 7th August 2018.

Present at the lecture was the Vice Chancellor of UBD, Datin Dr Hajah Anita Binurul Zahrina Pehin Orang Kaya Laila Wijaya Dato Seri Setia Haji Awang Abdul Aziz. Also in attendance were recipients of the Queen's Young Leaders Award, Yang Berhormat Khairunnisa Awang Haji Ash'ari and Pg Haji Ahmad Fadhillah Akhbar Pg Haji Sellahuddin. Other guests present included government and non-government representatives, principal officers, staff and students of UBD.

Her Excellency lauded Brunei Darussalam's close ties to the United Kingdom as both Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and His Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Muizzaddin Waddaulah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Omar 'Ali Saifuddien Sa'adul Khairi Waddien, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam demonstrate great fortitude and promise. Her Excellency highlighted how His Majesty has also echoed Her Majesty's commitment to the Commonwealth.

The Commonwealth Secretary General continued to praise UBD's role in equipping the youth of Brunei Darussalam with knowledge and skills that make them invaluable members of society, who also simultaneously empower the Commonwealth as a whole.

Among the issues raised during the lecture was the existential threat of climate change. With Commonwealth member states having pledged various ways to contribute, Her Excellency looks forward to what Brunei Darussalam can bring to the conservation efforts. With its firm policies on environmental conservation and biodiversity research in UBD, Her Excellency said that she sees that Brunei Darussalam may have plenty to share with the rest of the world especially regarding the mangroves. They may hold the key to combating rising water levels and mitigating damage caused by sudden floods.

Her Excellency also praised Brunei Darussalam's stance on gender equality. She was pleased to see how girls and women in the Sultanate have equal opportunity to education and jobs, a situation that many other countries can benefit from greatly.

Her Excellency also called on the youth as 60 percent of the Commonwealth population are under 30 years old. "They will be the ones to inherit our current problems," she pointed out. "They will also be the ones to come up with solutions for them." In the face of rising unemployment, she also hoped that the youth gather the courage and determination to excel through entrepreneurship, a path that many successful young individuals have chosen for themselves.