Botanic Gardens, People and Plants for a Sustainable World

Abstract

On behalf of the European Botanic Gardens Consortium (EBGC), the University of Lisbon and Jardim Botânico da Ajuda (Botanic Garden of Ajuda) on the occasion of its 250th anniversary organized the 8th European Congress of Botanic Gardens – EuroGard VIII, that was held in Lisbon, 7th-11th may 2018. Under the theme “Botanic Gardens, People and Plants for a Sustainable World”, it was intended to address many of the issues to which Botanic Gardens are contributing, in particular raising public awareness of environmental conservation challenges that our planet faces. EuroGard VIII bring together the participation of Botanic Gardens in Europe and other world regions. Moreover, the 15th Symposium of the Ibero- Macaronesian Association of Botanic Gardens took place at the same time, during which the aim was to assess the work carried out to meet the Aïchi Biodiversity Targets adopted by the Iberian-Macaronesian botanic gardens for 2020. The Congress included a diverse range of subjects and topics on biodiversity conservation, especially related to plants and the complex and extensive roles of botanic gardens. It emphasized how Botanic Gardens have been actively involved in shaping national and international policies and practices in plant conservation. They continue to have an influential role at all levels through their engagement with governments (that are Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity), and through their involvement in the Global Partnership for Plant Conservation (GPPC). It is acknowledged that botanic gardens come from very different roots but since 2002, the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), and its update in 2010, has provided a focus and primary framework to guide Botanic Gardens’ activities in strategic and practical contributions to plant conservation; The roles of Botanic Gardens in supporting the GSPC are manifold, from contributions of smaller gardens to single targets to potential contributions to all 16 targets by larger, better resourced, botanic gardensinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio