To accelerate effective conservation of global plant diversity, BGCI is coordinating a suite of Global Conservation Consortia, which catalyse groups of institutions and experts to collaboratively develop and implement comprehensive strategies to prevent extinction of priority threatened plant groups. Primary objectives include coordinated in situ and ex situ conservation efforts and dissemination of species recovery knowledge.

Acer griseum at Westonbirt, The National Arboretum, UK. Photo credit: Dan Crowley

The programmatic objectives of the Global Conservation Consortia are to:

• Foster new and existing network(s) of experts;
• Identify species of greatest conservation concern and prioritize conservation action;
• Ensure effective in situ species conservation;
• Establish, expand and manage ex situ collections of high conservation value;
• Foster applied research (e.g. conservation biology, ecology, horticulture, population genetics, taxonomy) to support species conservation;
• Build capacity to empower and mobilise in-country partners in diversity centres and across species’ ranges;
• Increase public awareness and engagement with species conservation issues; and
• Collaboratively fundraise to scale-up conservation action.

Consortia six tree groups have so far been established: Acer, Dipterocarps, Magnolia, Nothofagus, Oak, Rhododendron.

For more information about the Global Conservation Consortia, please visit the Global Conservation Consortia website.