Situated in the buffer zone of Ivindo National Park near the town of Makokou the Ipassa Research Station is the oldest research site in Gabon, dating back to 1962. It is managed by the Gabonese Institute of Research in Tropical Ecology (IRET), and is well equipped to host researchers to conduct research in the north-eastern part of the park. It hosts many Gabonese researchers from IRET, and now forms the field base for Duke University to conduct their ecological research program in Gabon. Science conducted at Ipassa has contributed enormously to our understanding of tropical ecosystems in Gabon, and an impressive list of almost 600 scientific publications exists (see Publications).