5.2 CONSERVATION

Background

The Gardens has given a high priority to the cultivation of rare and endangered flora and to working cooperatively with other organisations engaged in plant conservation. It has been a member of Botanic Gardens Conservation International since the inception of that organisation in 1987 and has been a participant in its various international conferences. Staff of the Gardens have been encouraged to collaborate with other government and non-government organisations in conservation activities and have received grants from bodies such as the World Wide Fund for Nature for work of this type.

In recent years the Gardens has promoted the concept of a nationally integrated network of plant conservation activities. Largely as a result of this, the Australian Network for Plant Conservation was established in 1991, involving botanic gardens, conservation organisations and private sector companies working with endangered and threatened Australian plants. The national office of the Network is located at the Gardens in Canberra.

Management prescriptions

Objective

The objective is to provide a national focus for and play a coordinating role in the conservation of the Australian flora.

Implementation

The plant conservation activities of the Gardens are an integral part of the broader program of the Australian Nature Conservation Agency. There is close liaison between the Gardens activities and other related Service programs, particularly the Endangered Species Program and Save the Bush, and this will be maintained.

Consistent with its aims and those of other Australian Nature Conservation Agency programs, the Gardens will continue to promote and support the Australian Network for Plant Conservation as the organisation to coordinate and integrate the plant conservation activities of both the public and private sectors. Facilities will be provided to enable the Network's national office to operate from the Gardens in Canberra and staff will be encouraged to participate in Network activities. The Gardens will also continue its involvement in the work of the Endangered Flora Network of the Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council.

Internationally, the Gardens and its staff will continue to support and play an active role in global and regional organisations involved in plant conservation, particularly the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources and its various commissions and specialist groups, Botanic Gardens Conservation International, and the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme.