News published: 29 February 2024. Updated: 02 April 2024

DEADLINE EXTENDED TO 15th April 2024. 

The Global Seed Conservation Challenge (GSCC) works to both support and challenge botanic gardens to work outside their garden walls to collect, bank and conserve seeds of threatened species. As part of the GSCC, BGCI, Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank and the IUCN Seed Conservation Specialist Group will be announcing the winners of seed conservation awards at the 8th Global Botanic Garden Congress (8GBGC).

There are six categories which include:

1. Conserved the greatest proportion of threatened species in their collection: Awarded to the institution with the highest proportion of species which are threatened in the wild. (This category will be decided via PlantSearch, so please uploaded your seed data).

2. Conserved the most useful species: Is your species a crop wild relative? Is it edible? Is it medicinal? Is it a food source for wildlife? Is it a timber species? Is it a keystone of the ecosystem? Is it useful for another reason?

3. Conserved the most difficult species to collect: Was your species found on top of a mountain, in the middle of a desert, in the depths of a forest? Does it fruit infrequently? Are the seeds hard or nasty to collect? Was it difficult to find? Was it difficult to collect for another reason?

4. Conserved the most threatened species: Are there few individuals of the species left in the wild? Is the species threatened by climate change, invasive species or habitat destruction? Did you find a species previously thought to be extinct? Is it the rarest species for another reason?

5. Most photogenic seed: Does your species have unique colour or texture for a seed? Does it mimic something else in nature? Is it pretty under ultraviolet light or magnified?

6. Most unusual cleaning or germination process: Did you have to develop new methods to clean the seed? Is it one of the longest cleaning or dormancy breaking processes? Was it the first time your species was germinated in a collection and unique germination methods had to be found?

The seed conservation activity has to have taken place after 2021 (in the last 3 years).

We are asking botanic gardens to nominate themselves as part of the Global Seed Conservation Challenge. If you think your garden merits one of the awards, please fill out the nomination form at the link below.

Nominations must be received by 15th April 2024.

Nominate Your Garden Today!