ENSCONET:Linking RIBES to seed banks across Europe

Collegando RIBES alle banche del germoplasma di tutta Europa

Simon Linington

Seed Conservation Department, RBG Kew, Wakehurst Place, Sussex, UK

s.linington@rbgkew.org.uk

ENSCONET Project Purpose

Improved quality, co-ordination and integration of European seed conservation practice, policy and research for native plant species - to assist EU conservation policy and its obligations to the Convention on Biological Diversity and its Global Strategy for Plant Conservation

Migliorare la qualitá, la coordinazione e l’integrazione dei metodi di conservazione del germoplasma in Europa, la polita e la ricerca sulle speci native-per assistere la polita della EU nella conservazione a rispondere gli obblighi della Convenzione sulla Diversita’ Biologica e della Strategia Globale per la Conservazione delle Piante

Basic ENSCONET information

• A Co-ordination Action

• Funded under the Research Infrastructures Activity of EU Framework Programme 6 (comprises 18 Integrated Infrastructure Initiatives and 3 Co-ordination Actions)

• Grant of € 2.54 m plus significant institutional ‘in kind’ support

• November 2004 – November 2009

• Co-ordinated by RBG Kew

ENSCONET Project Purpose

• 19 European institutions

• 16 with seed banks for native species; 3 with associated interest

• Seed banks range in experience:

13 months (Lombardy Seed Bank, Pavia)

40 years (Universidad Politecnica de Madrid)

• Local, national, regional remits

Disparate Co-ordinated

Separare Coordinare

Bring together isolated activities and institutions to maximum effect

European native plant conservation context

Contesto: conservazione delle piante in Europa

• Bern Convention (Bern 1982)• Convention on Biological Diversity (Rio 1992)• EC Habitat Directive 92/43/EEC (Brussels 1992)• EU 6th Environment Action Programme (2001)• European Plant Conservation Strategy (Průhonice 2001)• Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (Hague 2002)

– 60% of threatened plant species ex situ by 2010….– Networks for plant conservation activities established or strengthened…– Development of models with protocols for plant conservation…– The importance of plant diversity and the need for its conservation

incorporated into … public awareness programmes

Climate change – effect in Europe by 2080

Copyright ©2005 by the National Academy of Sciences

Thuiller, Wilfried et al. (2005) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 102, 8245-8250

Spatial sensitivity of plant diversity in Europe ranked by biogeographic regions

Species richness - now Species loss Species turnover

Cambio climatico-effetto in Europa per il 2080

Recent European recognition of the importance and loss of biodiversity

Recente riconoscimento dell'importanza e della perdita di biodiversitá a livello europeo

– Gothenburg European Council (2001)– Kyiv Resolution (2003)– Killarney Declaration (2004)– Countdown 2010 (2004)

Some key players in European native plant conservation

Conservazione delle piante native europee: alcuni giocatori chiave

• National government agencies

• Planta Europa

• European Botanic Gardens Consortium

• National botanic garden networks

• BGCI

• IPGRI (crop wild relatives)

• National seed bank networks

• REDBAG – Spain

• RIBES - Italy

• Regional seed bank network - GENMEDOC

• Individual seed banks

• Organisations with interest in seed conservation

ENSCONET ParticipantsAustria

Belgium

Cyprus

France

Greece (2)

Hungary

Ireland

Italy (3)

Poland

Slovakia

Spain (5)

UK

New members (5)

ENSCONET Participants

• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK• University of Athens, Greece• Institute of Botany, Bratislava, Slovakia• Budapest Zoo & Botanic Garden, Hungary• Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania, Greece• Jardin Botánico de Córdoba, Spain• Trinity College Dublin, Ireland• Jardin Botánico Viera y Clavijo, Gran Canaria, Spain• Agricultural Research Institute, Lefkosia, Cyprus• Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, Spain• National Botanic Garden of Belgium, Meise, Belgium• Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, France• Universita di Pavia, Italy• Universita di Pisa, Italy• Jardí Botànic de Sóller, Mallorca, Spain• Museo Tridentino di Scienze Naturali, Trento, Italy• Universitat de Valencia, Spain• University of Vienna, Austria• Warsaw Botanical Garden, Poland

Organisation of ENSCONETOrganizzazione di ENSCONET

Management Team

Annual Network Meeting

External Arbiters

Collecting Activity Group

Curation Activity Group

Data Management Activity Group

Dissemination Activity Group

Progress reports

Proposals for future actions

Co-ordination of Activity Groups

Progress monitoring

Links to European conservation & research communities

Management Team MeetingsRiunioni del gruppo gestione

CollectingRaccolta

• Baseline of species in European banks

• Prioritised list of species for collection

• Seed collecting protocol

Leader / Deputy – Jardin Canario / Chania

• Informazione basica sulle specie

conservate nelle banche europee • Lista delle specie prioritarie per la

raccolta• Protocolli per la raccolta dei semi

ENSCONET collection data

Other collection data e.g. RIBES

List of European plant species + threat status

Compare

Prioritised target for each bioregion / country

Future collecting

Key task of Collecting Group

European biogeographical regions

Regioni biogeografiche europee

X

X

√

√

√

√

√

√

X

X

X

6 regions currently represented within ENSCONET

Definition of ‘Europe’?

EEA

Checking out the collecting protocolControllare i protocolli per la raccolta

CurationConservazione

Leader / deputy – Warsaw / Trento

Enhanced quality / security of seed conservation for native species within Europe

• Baseline documentation on facilities available

• Agreed common curation protocols

• Sharing expertise / facilities

Miglioramento della qualità / sicurezza per la

conservazione del germoplasma delle speci

native in Europa• Documentazione sulle strutture disponibili• Accordo sugli protocolli per la conservazione • Scambi di conoscenze/ strutture operative

Data ManagementGestione dati

Leader / deputy – Dublin / Chania

• Facilitate data exchange

• Protocol for recording seed germination data

• Data management system

• relational database structure

• support consistent data entry new banks

• Virtual European native species seed bank giving easier access to researchers

• Facilitare lo scambio dei dati• Protocolli per registrare i dati di germinazione • Sistema per la gestione dati

•struttura relazionale delle basi dati•sostegno costante per l’inserimento dati alle nuove banche

• Banca del germoplasma virtuale per le specie native europee per facilitare l’accesso dei dati ai ricercatori

Dissemination Divulgazione

Leader / deputy – Valencia / Crete

• Website / Sito Web www.ensconet.com

• E-forum

• ENSCONEWS – Annual bulletin /

Bollettino annuale

• Information sheet /

Foglio informativo

• Press releases

RIBES & ENSCONET together we have greater influence

RIBES & ENSCONET: insieme abbiamo piú influenza

RIBES ↔ ENSCONET

Greater influence

National / international policy / funding

The Vision for ENSCONET La visione per ENSCONET

• Plays a key role within European conservation activity and particularly the delivery of the GSPC

• Links well to related initiatives, groups and databases• Influences policy and resource commitments• Develops into a long-lasting and wider network

• Gioca un ruolo chiave all'interno delle attività europee di conservazione e in particolare risponde alla GSPC• Si collega bene alle iniziative relative, ai gruppi e alle basi di dati• Influenza la politica e impegna le risorse• Si sta sviluppando in una rete duratura e grande