The report provides a baseline assessment of current knowledge on the diversity of plants on earth, the global threats plants face, the policies in place and their effectiveness in dealing with threats. The report has taken a year to produce and involved more than 80 scientists.

This is the first ever global assessment on the state of the world’s plants. We already have a ‘State of the World’s …birds, sea-turtles, forests, cities, mothers, fathers, children even antibiotics’ but not plants. I find this remarkable given the importance of plants to all of our lives– from food, medicines, clothing, building materials and biofuels, to climate regulation. This report therefore provides the first step in filling this critical knowledge gap.

Professor Kathy Willis, Director of Science at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

The status of plants outlined in the report is based on the most up to date knowledge from around the world and covers the following topics:

• Naming and counting the world’s plants
• New plant species discovered in 2015
• Plant evolutionary relationships and plant genomes
• Useful plants
• Important plant areas
• Country focus: status of knowledge of Brazilian plants
• Climate change
• Global land-cover change
• Invasive species
• Plant diseases - state of research
• Extinction risk and threats to plants
• CITES and the prevention of illegal trade
• The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and Benefit Sharing

You can download the report here:

State of the World's Plants report 2016

To find out more:

Visit the State of the World's Plants website

More about the State of the World's Plants Symposium

Follow #SOTWP on Twitter for live updates during the State of the World's Plants Symposium (11-12 May 2016).