Well, given that I am writing from a hotel room near Heathrow Airport where I am currently in quarantine, it’s probably fair to say that we are not rid of this COVID nasty quite yet. I had mistakenly thought it was OK to travel again, and flew into Lusaka, Zambia to find that the Omicron variant story had hit the headlines while I was in flight. Twenty four hours later the UK Government imposed restrictions on travelers from southern Africa, and my options to fly home diminished day by day as the airlines cancelled flights. I got back to the UK eventually thanks to Kenya Airways, and a very convoluted route to my current quarters in quarantine. Not quite the two weeks I’d been expecting in the African bush. Nevertheless, I am fortunate to still have my health, my job and my family waiting to feed me Christmas treats. Ten days in a hotel room also presents an excellent opportunity for reflection as we near the end of 2021.

Starting with the bad news, we still live in an inequitable world where the wealthy countries have access to healthcare and the poor countries don’t. In Zambia, where I was last week, fewer than 10% of people are vaccinated against COVID. This is not just about inequitable supply of vaccines. It is also about lack of infrastructures and delivery systems. Driving through Bauleni township in Lusaka, my taxi driver pointed out houses the size of my hotel room with a dozen people living in them. The old and the sick have no chance with COVID around. Despite all of this, the hospitality and kindness I received during my short stay in Zambia was incredible. One of the highlights was a tree walk in Lusaka Forest Reserve with enthusiastic participation from people of all races, genders and ages.

This in contrast to the fault lines and fractures we have seen appearing in the multi-cultural societies of the north along the lines of race, gender, sexuality, religion and just about anything else we can think of to disagree on – undoubtedly exacerbated by our self-isolation and social media-fueled bubbles. The reality is that we have much more in common and to be thankful for than differences. This self-indulgence extends to our relationship with the environment. It was wonderful to attend COP-26 but too much of the agenda was about people and social justice issues, not about how we need to re-think our relationship with the environment and develop economic and social policies that protect and enhance nature rather than destroy it. As the placards said, ‘This is an existential crisis’ that affects all of humanity. Instead we squabble about who gets what and who is losing out. I fear the same may happen at CBD COP-15, where the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity is in danger of being torpedoed by disputes over the terms of the Nagoya Protocol. I hope I’m wrong.

“The reality is that we have much more in common and to be thankful for than differences.”

But now for the good news (we are optimists in the biodiversity business). Our year started out with the publication of the 10 golden rules for reforestation review article. Further momentum and urgency was generated by the International Reforestation for Biodiversity, Carbon Capture and Livelihoods Conference hosted by Kew and BGCI in February 2021, which was attended by 2,260 participants from 113 countries. The resulting Kew Declaration, which calls for urgent action to ensure that large scale tree planting does not damage biodiversity was signed by 423 organisations (including IUCN members and Commissions) and 2612 individuals from 114 countries. The next step was an emergency motion to the IUCN World Conservation Congress in September and, although this was rejected on the grounds that this is not a ‘new’ issue, it did focus minds with 29 IUCN member organisations supporting the Motion.

“The Global Biodiversity Standard combines two of the great strengths we have in botanical institutions – botanical survey and inventory, and the ability to grow a wide range of native and threatened species.”

Our biggest step forward, however, has been the conception of a Global Biodiversity Standard (GBS) aimed at tree planting and restoration initiatives, and a mechanism which will deploy the expertise in our network not only to assess impacts on biodiversity but also to provide mentorship and support for better biodiversity outcomes. I am particularly excited about this initiative because it combines two of the great strengths we have in botanical institutions – botanical survey and inventory, and the ability to grow a wide range of native and threatened species. The GBS will be a vehicle for deploying those skills. As always, the challenges will be cultural rather than technical. Can we, as a professional community, meet the demand for our services?

BGCI will do all it can to support this effort, and the next steps are:

1. Testing the methodology in real world conditions;
2. Building hubs of expertise in biodiverse countries;
3. Developing a business model so that the certification is robust but affordable and pays for itself, and;
4. Mainstreaming the requirement for the GBS with policymakers and financiers of tree planting and restoration.

Of course, there are many other things that BGCI has been engaged with in 2021, including building our eLearning platform and training resources, well attended webinars, developing a digital plant material exchange platform, publishing the State of the World’s Trees report, and launching the GlobalTree Portal. In addition, given the important role botanic gardens play in plant conservation projects across the world, BGCI is currently running a Holiday Challenge to support small botanic gardens to safeguard plants that are extinct in the wild. Please support this appeal if you can.

Finally, thank you to all of you who recently completed BGCI’s member’s survey. The most important benefits of BGCI membership that you identified were being part of an international plant conservation network, and access to educational material and resources, including BGCI’s publications. Rest assured that our intention is to continue enhance these services over the coming year.

Season’s greetings to you all, and thank you for being part of our botanical community. Enjoy precious time with your families as the year ends, and we look forward to seeing you in 2022.