Information file: 304

National Strategy for Plant Conservation

A strategy for implementation

Carolina Castellanos ▶ Carolina Sofrony ▶ Diego Higuera ▶ Natalia Peña ▶ Natalia Valderrama ▶

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Colombia has advanced in implementing actions to accomplish the goals established in the Estrategia Nacional para la Conservación de Plantas (National Strategy for Plant Conservation)1, significantly adding to the global strategy for plant conservation.

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Plant conservation is an imperative for the survival of human beings and all other species that live on the planet. Plants support an infinity of vital processes, including those that have not yet been discovered, and offer various benefits to human societies, which directly or indirectly owe great part of their development to their close relationship with plants.

The importance of biological diversity and its interest to humanity was recognized internationally in the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). This convention also recorded the responsability different states and society have in establishing actions for the conservation, sustainable use, and the just and equal distribution of the benefits that derive from the use of biodiversity. With the same purpose, other tools that aim to achieve the objectives of the CBD have been generated. One of these is the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), which was received by the Conference of the Parties of CBD in 2002 and constituted the first step towards the development and adoption of goals for the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity2.

As a member of the CBD, Colombia has developed both institutional policies and strategies to contribute to the conservation of the biodiversity of the country. In 2001, Colombia pioneered in formulating a National Strategy for Plant Conservation as a guide for the implementation of actions directed towards increasing knowledge, conservation, and sustainable use of Colombian flora, thus creating spaces of integration and vinculating key figures with the topic.

In 2010, the implementation advances of the National Strategy for Plant Conservation were assessed and the initial main themes updated according to the objectives and goals proposed by the Global Strategy 3. In the framework of this revision and as a methodological approach for the implementation of the National Strategy for Plant Conservation, a research and monitoring agenda that included procedures to prioritize species for conservation efforts was proposed because more than 25,000 species in the country must be prioritized. Using these procedures in regional workshops, 307 plant species have already been prioritized in the Caribbean, Orinoquía, and coffee growing region 4,5,6.

Even before its constitution, many initiatives leaded by academics, institutions, and society in general have contributed to the objectives of the National Strategy for Plant Conservation. However, developing an integrated follow-up of such advances has been a challenge.

With the aim of having more specific goals and actions for the implementation of the National Strategy for Plant Conservation in Colombia, in 2014 the Ministerio de Ambiente y Desarrollo Sostenible (Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development), Humboldt Institute, and the Red Nacional de Jardines Botánicos (National Network of Botanical Gardens) started the process of formulating an Action Plan. Such initiative was conceived in order to create a tool that allows for the articulation of scientific knowledge with policies in decision making scenarios in order to manage Colombia’s native flora and strengthen the use of the Política Nacional para la Gestión Integral de la Biodiversidad y sus Servicios Ecosistémicos (National Policy for the Integrated Management of Biodiversity and its Ecosystem Services).

The Action Plan evidences the major challenges regarding conservation, sustainable use, and education, among others. It is a tool that allows for different parts of society (p.e. civil society, government agencies, productive sectors) to identify their role in plant conservation and know about the variety of processes taking place at different levels and scales.


▲ See objectives and goals ▼

Objectives and goals of the National Strategy for Plant Conservation

▲ See advances ▼


Outstanding advances in the accomplishment of the objectives of the National Strategy for Plant Conservation in the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation

Goal 1

Goal 2

Goal 3

Goal 4

Goal 5

Goal 6

Goal 7

Goal 8

Goal 9

Goal 10

Goal 11

Goal 12

Goal 13

Goal 14

Goal 15

Goal 16

Catálogo de Plantas y Líquenes de Colombia (Catalogue of Plants and Lichens of Colombia)6:

  • 180

    20

  • 13

  • 24,528

    769

  • Non-vascular plants:

    13


    932


    704


    1,674

  • Taxonomic reference and fundamental tool in land use planning.

Red Books Series of Colombia:

  • 1,870

    species with evaluations for threat status

    798

    of which are in some threat category.

Registered Protected Areas up to 2015:

  • 883

  • 48

  • 535

  • 348

  • 92

    plant species as Object of Conservation in

    43

    Natural National Parks

Ex situ conservation:

  • 21

    botanical gardens

  • 11

    Andean region,

    4

    Pacific region,

    3

    Amazon region, and

    3

    Caribbean region
  • La National Network of Botanical Gardens develops a project for the integrated conservation of 10 priority species of the Tropical Dry Forest (2014-2016), as well as capacitation processes and education of local communities.

  • 400

    species of native plants used as food

  • 1,442

    species used as medicine

  • 114

    species used for extraction of fibers
  • Management plans for the adoption of sustainable practices in the exploitation of vegetal resources: Quindío wax palm, palms, timber species, tropical cycads, and orchids (the last two groups in CITES appendices)
  • Manual of identification of timber species as a tool for trafficking control goo.gl/FWzouP

  • 26

    states with environmental education projects
  • Programa de Educación Ambiental (Environmental Education Program) that promotes and strengthens Proyectos Ambientales Escolares (School Environmental Projects) in educational institutions
  • Study groups for plants exchanging of taxonomic information for species
  • National Network of Botanical Gardens
  • Colombian Network of Ecological Restoration
  • Colombian Botanical Association
  • Colombian Herbaria Association
  • Orchidology Associations

  • 391,000

  • 21 %

  • Expansion of

    agricultural frontier

    and logging are the major factors of transformation and threats for plants.
  • Online flora consortium:

    20

    institutions
  • Global Plants Initiative:

    1.8

    type specimens and other type of resources available for research
  • Global Plants (JSTOR 2013): online database fed by scientific community and conservationists
  • Tool that allows for the exchange of information, methodologies, and experiences published by the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation.

  • 1,771

    areas important for plants, very few are under some type of conservation strategy
  • Alliance of botanical gardens for ecological restoration

  • 10,000

    are represented in living collections of botanical gardens

  • 3,546

    are identified as wild relatives of cultivated species
  • Global Fund for Agricultural Diversity for 10 of

    14

    around the globe have decreased vegetal productivity productividad vegetal entre 2000 y 2013

  • 4,979

    categorized as invasive species at a global scale.

  • 300

    species of plants in CITES Appendix III

  • 30,000

    in Appendix II

    10

    in Appendix III

  • 31,128

    species of plants are exploited (approx.)

    5.538

    human food

    17.810

    medicine

    1.621

    fuel

    11.365

    provision of materials

    2.503

    poison

    3.649

    animal feed

    8.140

    environmental uses

    1.382

    social uses

    683

    food for invertebrates

    5.338

    genetic uses
  • Global Alliance for Plant Conservation
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Number of publications in Colombia between 1993 and 2013

A total of 1805 publications were identified as part of the analysis of the National Strategy of Plant Conservation in the last twenty years. Of these, most respond to goal 1, which is related to flora inventories and lists. It is necessary to strenghten the production of knowledge for goals 2, 5, 10, and 11, which are related to the status of conservation of plants, important areas for their conservation, invasive species, and international trafficking. 9.
60% of publications are concentrated in the Andean region. Research should be developed in other regions such as the Orinoquía and Caribbean, areas that had the smallest percentages of publications.

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Attachments

Keywords

Public policies Environmental norms
Ecosystem services Conservation

Conservation Plans for Threatened Plants

Biodiversity: Innovation in Response to Climate Change


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