International Day for Biological Diversity, 22 May 2020

World was warned in 2017 that “The presence of SARS-CoV–like viruses in horseshoe bats, together with the culture of abusing biodiversity via eating exotic mammals is a time bomb.” This time bomb exploded in November 2019 with the Covid-19. Covid-19 has taught us that despite all the technological advances that the modern society has achieved, we are fully dependent on healthy and vibrant ecosystems for our health, water, food, medicines, clothes, fuel, shelter, energy, etc. Covid-19 is a wake-up call to re-examine our relationship with the natural world and respect biodiversity.

Biological diversity (also known as biodiversity), in simple terms, is “the full repertoire of species and biological communities; the genetic variation within species; and interactions at ecosystem”. It is certainly exciting to know about microbes (useful and harmful), plants (on farmers’ fields and in forests) and animals (pets, cattle and wild) on earth and in oceans as well as to understand how these species interact and live together!

To commemorate the adoption of Convention on Biological Diversity on 22 May 1992, the UN General Assembly adopted 22 May as International Day for Biological Diversity. This year’s slogan “Our Solutions are in Nature” emphasises hope, solidarity and the importance of working together at all levels to build a future of life in harmony with nature.

2020 has been challenging so far. But it is imperative that we transform 2020 as a year of opportunities and solutions. For, we must understand nature and biodiversity and learn to build pandemic-resilient communities. Agriculture keeps a nation hunger-free and new varieties keep agriculture resilient to biotic and abiotic stresses. Indeed our solutions for better varieties are there in plant genetic resources. ICAR-National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources is at the forefront of finding solutions by unravelling useful traits from germplasm conserved in the National Genebank.

Address by the Director, ICAR-NBPGR, International Day for Biological Diversity Our Solutions are in nature ICAR-NBPGR on 22-May-2020     YouTube      Twitter
IBD &F working from 22 May 2019-22 May 2020     YouTube

(Source:  Dr. Sunil Archak, Principal Scientist and OIC, AKMU, ICAR-NBPGR, New Delhi)