One World

This week has been extremely busy and intense! Dinner in Wuhan with Kang was delicious. It was definitely the best food I've had so far. And wonderful company!

Tuesday's sessions were primarily about plant conservation issues with climate change. The Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC) has 16 targets and goals associated with things like deforestation and habitat destruction. But when they were written just a couple of years ago, global climate change was not the threat that the scientific community sees it as today. Now many plant conservations and ecologists are realizing that a much bigger number of plants need to be protected for the future because of the amount of unknowns associated with our changing climate. This called for much debate and heated discussions! The director of the Forest Research Institute in Malaysia expressed his concerns for the 3rd world, or developing, countries and their ability to meet any of the goals set out by GSPC. But Stephen Blackmore, Regius Keeper at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, reminded us all that it is dangerous to use terms like "3rd world" when discussing plant conservation. In his eyes, we are one world. I took from this the idea that we must work together at all levels, as individuals and governments to protect our only planet through the conservation of plants and therin the future of humanity. In the words of Dr. Stephen Hopper this morning, "Act globally, think locally."

After another delicious dinner in Wuhan with Kang a group of us went back to the hotel for drinks and further discussions of climate change. A horticulturist from the UK says much of Europe is optimistic about the ability for humanity to make a change in the positive direction because they have seen their governments make changes that have helped. Things like taxing cars, fuel, renewable energy and recycling have really improved their way of life. Several Americans at the table expressed their feeling of doom-that the damage to our earth is irreversible and humanity is on an unstoppable path to its own destruction. Others remarked that much of the world blames America for the amount of greenhouse gases that are significantly contributing to climate change-and yet it is Americans who seem the most pessimistic for change. Maybe we are the ones who actually have the chance to make the most change.

We also had a North American meeting where David Galbraith handed out the North American Plant for Plant Conservation, which is really a reiteration of the global strategy. It will be launched sometime in the next month or so, with perhaps something formal at this year's AAPGA meeting in Washington, D.C. in June.

Yesterday was a day off of the conference and a day tour in Wuhan. The botanical garden was beautiful, but I wish I'd had more time there. I hope to go back tomorrow if I can find some time. And last night was a formal banquet and then an acrobatic show for the delegates. It was amazing.