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Completing a Global Task

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Completing a Global Task COMPLETING A GLOBAL TASK Conserving Crop Diversity, Forever 15 YEARS The first 15 years of forever In 2004, the genetic foundation But it wasn’t all gloom and doom. At The Crop Trust was established in of everything we eat rested on a conference organized by the UN October 2004 with a mission to treacherous ground. Crop diversity Food and Agriculture Organization help build a global system of ex situ – the raw material that breeders in 1996, 150 countries had launched crop diversity conservation and use and farmers need to prepare for a Global Plan of Action on crop and fund it through an endowment the challenges of the future – could diversity, eventually to form a major that would make it a lasting reality. be found in genebanks all over the pillar of the landmark International When the Governing Body of the world, but it was nowhere near as Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources Plant Treaty held its first meeting in secure as its immense importance for Food and Agriculture (‘the 2006, it recognized the Crop Trust as demanded. Plant Treaty’). The Plant Treaty an essential element of the Treaty’s brought the diversity of 64 food and funding strategy. Sometimes, accidents and disasters forage crops, as well as a roster struck. Sometimes, quite simply, of international crop collections, Today, a USD 300 million Endowment genebanks suffered budget cuts into a multilateral system where Fund meets more and more of the and couldn’t pay their electricity this material will forever remain needs of the world’s most important bills. This could be catastrophic too: accessible to all who need it under genebanks, with a commitment to short lapses in the management of agreed rules. do so forever – at last, a long-term collections could lead to permanent solution for a long-term challenge. loss of diversity. Unique adaptations The Plant Treaty made history, and Far more accessions are safety – and options for the future – could it brought attention to the question duplicated in a global system of die out forever. of exactly what “forever” means in genebanks around the world, and crop conservation. A crop collection nearly a million are backed up in the Even the most important requires daily work, constant Svalbard Global Seed Vault. A single international genebanks worried vigilance, and steady, reliable, online portal lets breeders search about their future from budget to predictable funding. There had been a majority of the world’s collected budget. And despite the critical too many close calls at genebanks crop diversity in seconds, and more need for new diversity for crop over the years. Something new accessions than ever are ready to be improvement efforts, it was seldom was needed to fulfill the promise of sent anywhere they are needed. straightforward to put the immensely conserving forever. valuable material on genebank These are extraordinary changes shelves to use. There was no single Something like the Crop Trust. to achieve in just 15 years. Together, place to search for accession-level they point the way to a global information across the scattered system that lies within reach and to landscape of genebanks, and even what can be achieved in the next if a breeder could locate material, 15 years. much of it was not easily available for distribution. 2008 2015 Crop The Svalbard Global Seed Vault opens Countries adopt the Sustainable as a partnership between the Ministry of Development Goals (SDGs), including Agriculture and Food of Norway, the Nordic Target 2.5 on safeguarding and sharing Genetic Resource Center and the Crop agrobiodiversity. The first-ever withdrawals Trust Trust. By the end of the year, the Seed Vault are made from the Svalbard Global Seed holds 320,553 accessions – 75% of which Vault: retrievals of faba bean, wheat, barley, are deposited with assistance from the lentil, chickpea and other crops are made Crop Trust. Time Magazine names the Seed by the International Center for Agricultural Timeline Vault one of the best inventions of the year. Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) after its genebank in Aleppo, Syria is unable to function due to civil conflict. 2004 2010 The Crop Trust is established as the world’s The Crop Trust and CGIAR Consortium only organization dedicated solely to Office commission a costing study of the 2017 conserving crop diversity in genebanks. annual funds required to maintain all CGIAR The six-year CGIAR Genebank Platform Geoff Hawtin is appointed Interim Executive collections and distribute their germplasm. takes over as the successor to the Director at its headquarters at the United Genebank CRP. The Food Forever Initiative Nations Food and Agriculture Organization is launched to raise awareness of efforts to in Rome, Italy. 2011 achieve SDG Target 2.5. The Crop Trust begins a 10-year project on conserving and using crop wild relatives for 2006 climate change adaptation, funded by the 2018 The Crop Trust signs with the International Government of Norway. The Svalbard Global Seed Vault celebrates Rice Research Institute (IRRI) its first long- its 10th anniversary, and the Government term grant to support an international crop of Norway announces plans to upgrade collection. This guarantees funding of a 2012 the facility. The Crop Trust agrees to fully proportion of the costs of the genebank’s The Crop Trust opens its new headquarters fund the essential operations of the IRRI basic operations forever. Since then, in Bonn, Germany. Together with CGIAR, genebank forever. National partners in 25 the Crop Trust has entered into similar it launches the five-year CGIAR Research countries finish collecting more than 4,600 partnerships to support 20 other crop Program for Managing and Sustaining Crop crop wild relatives. collections around the world. Collections (the Genebank CRP), taking on financial responsibility and oversight for 11 international genebanks, based on the 2019 2007 results of the costing study. The Crop Trust celebrates its 15th birthday. Cary Fowler becomes Crop Trust Executive Entering a new era, it begins looking Director. The Crop Trust launches the towards increased support to national Global System Project in collaboration with 2013 crop collections. With support from the the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, with Marie Haga becomes Crop Trust Executive German Government, preparatory work complementary funding from the Grains Director. The Crop Trust sets a target of with the aim of upgrading several national Research and Development Corporation of raising USD 850 million for its Endowment genebanks in sub-Saharan Africa begins. Australia. The project aims to strengthen Fund to finance a global system for the conservation efforts and secure at-risk conservation of crop diversity, centered crop diversity held in national collections in around key international, regional and developing countries. national collections – and the Svalbard Global Seed Vault as the backup facility for the world’s genebanks. Commitment with no end date The Endowment Fund is the big has increased its commitments to 2018 with the decision to permanently idea that lets the Crop Trust do provide dependable resources to fund the entire operation of the what it does. It stands behind the keep these genetic resources safe world’s largest rice collection, held long-term funding agreements and accessible forever under the by the International Rice Research signed with 21 of the world’s most terms of the Plant Treaty. Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines. The important ex situ collections of Crop Trust intends to emulate this crop diversity, as recognized by the The Crop Trust is continually building achievement for other food crops in Plant Treaty under its Article 15. As the Endowment Fund to provide the years ahead. the Endowment has grown with more of the assured funding that contributions from donors of all genebanks need to maintain their Since 2004, over USD 35 million sizes, along with a concessional loan precious material in viable conditions has been withdrawn from the from the Government of Germany and make it accessible to users. The Endowment Fund to support the of USD 57 million, the Crop Trust effort reached a momentous point in CGIAR international crop collections. APPROXIMATELY USD 300 MILLION IN THE ENDOWMENT FUND AS OF OCTOBER 2019 LONG-TERM AGREEMENTS TO FUND CROP COLLECTIONS FROM THE ENDOWMENT Commitment with no end date How to save a crop How many kinds of strawberries undertakings was to create such a strategy for banana underwent a are there? Where are the world’s source. The global crop conservation major update while new strategies largest collections of oats? What is strategies are this and more: they are were developed for coffee, tea, the most efficient way to conserve a a solid scientific foundation for global apple and tropical forages. coconut variety? efforts, and they lay out strategic action plans, from the most acute One effect of this strategic approach It is not possible to ensure that a needs to the longest-term vision of a has been to draw attention to crop’s diversity is secure without a global system. national genebanks. These conserve great deal of knowledge: on how important crops that lack a large much diversity actually exists, where The Crop Trust worked with leading global collection, and they make it is found, what threats it faces, what crop experts for several years to vital diversity available to scientists efforts are underway to protect it develop strategies for 22 crops, and farmers both in their own and what remains to be done. alongside eight regional strategies. countries and abroad. It is their There are crop strategies for the place in global strategies that has The Global Plan of Action established major staple cereals, with their informed the next big step: providing a broad overview, but when the hundreds of thousands of genebank support forever to key national Crop Trust began, there was no accessions, and also for less- genebanks.
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