Plant Diversity Challenge - Plantlife

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Objective 5: Building Capacity for the Conservation of Plant DiversityTarget 15:Training in plant conservationOngoing actions contributing tomeeting the targetThere is much ongoing work in this area thatwill help to deliver the target. Delivery of thebiodiversity strategy targets will be key inachieving this challenge.High priority additional work• Improving communication betweenecological practitioners, trainingorganisations, and the voluntary andacademic sectors to share best practice andexperience• Promoting training in whole plant biology atall educational levels, in particular this mustdeliver more people trained in fieldidentificationMedium priority additional work• Promoting careers in plant conservationThe number of trained people working with appropriatefacilities in plant conservation increased, according tonational needs, to achieve the targets of this strategy.ScopeTarget 15 aims to strengthen and co-ordinate human and technical resources,improving communication and knowledge management to advance the conservationand sustainable use of plants and their habitats.These goals will be achieved byprioritising research and training needs and by enhancing technical and scientific cooperation.‘Trained’people are defined as individuals possessing more than basicidentification or other conservation-related skills;‘facilities’ are any element of theinfrastructure that aids those activities (not only analytical laboratories but alsolibraries and web-based tools); and ‘conservation’ is defined in a broad sense.Current situationThe decline of systematic biology was addressed recently by the House of LordsSelect Science and Technology Committee Inquiry into Biodiversity and Systematics.The Government has now submitted its response to the Committee’s report, thisincludes its response to the nine recommendations made by the House of Lords toimprove the contribution that systematics can make in the conservation of biologicaldiversity.An indication of the number of field botanists in the UK can be made by consideringthe learned societies: the British Mycological Society has c. 600 members, BritishLichen Society 621, British Phycological Society 517, British Bryological Society 589,British Pteridological Society 652 and the Botanical Society of the British Isles 2,950.A good indication of the contribution these botanists make to plant conservation isthat it is estimated that more than a quarter of a million hours of volunteer timewas invested in the field work and production of the New Atlas of the British & IrishFlora published in 2002.A strategy for teaching science in schools in England has been produced by theDepartment for Education and Skills but concern has been expressed regarding thelimited emphasis on organismal biology in schools. One key area especially (andwidely) adversely affected has been field studies; for example, only c. 10% of schoolsnow include a fieldwork element in GCSE biology and related subjects.Thisreinforces the need expressed in target 14 to encourage contact with nature.Looking to the futureOne of the main drivers for achieving this target will be providing the capacityrequired to meet the other targets in the Strategy. For instance, target 1 will requiretaxonomists trained in plant, algal and fungal taxonomy; targets 2, 5, 6 and 7 willrequire workers with field identification skills to provide surveillance; and target 842
JOHN MACPHERSON/WOODFALL WILD IMAGESWe need to ensure that enough people aretrained to do the many jobs required tosupport implementation of the GlobalStrategy for Plant Conservation in the UK.will require conservationists based in botanic gardens. One of the key challenges willbe promoting the subject at all educational levels in order to ensure that sufficientpeople are entering plant conservation careers.This is particularly urgent as theneed for field identification skills increases in connection with the fields ofenvironmental assessments and enforcement of biodiversity legislation.The action outlined in the Country Biodiversity Strategies needs therefore to besupported by efforts to cultivate the fundamental aspects of plant conservation suchas identification skills and practical conservation experience.The Field StudiesCouncil,The Workers’ Educational Association (WEA), and academic institutes suchas the University of Birmingham are among many organisations which offer coursesor qualifications in field identification.NIKKI GIBBS/PLANTLIFE43
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Plant Diversity Challenge - Plantlife

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