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Paper long abstract:

As a result of the historical links between Kew and institutes in different parts of Africa, Kew has many herbarium accessions from Africa and supporting information about the distribution and uses of these species. Currently Kew is collating and studying these collections with collaborators in Africa with the aim of supporting many of the objectives outlined in the “Global Strategy for Plant Conservation”, “Africa’s science and technology consolidated plan of action” (New Partnership for Africa’s Development, NEPAD) for biodiversity as outlined in 2005 as well as those in the UN Millennium Development Goals. The African Union Commission and NEPAD have identified their common objectives to develop and use science and technology for the socio-economic transformation of Africa and to improve its integration into the world economy. Better use of the biodiversity within Africa is a fundamental concept that underpins the majority of these initiatives and NEPAD has specifically asked for support to improve the scientific infrastructure and technical capacity within Africa. Our vision at Kew is to see a wide range of species and vegetation types conserved and sustainably used within Africa, through the use of best available information by our African partners and others. Our strategy, therefore, is to make Kew's botanical information (both collections and expertise) much more widely available to a broad range of potential user. This, of course, requires close collaboration with our African partners, particularly in areas of high plant diversity that are being threatened by habitat loss. This talk will provide an overview of some of the projects that involve Kew.