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Title: The Global Plant Council: Increasing the impact of plant research to meet global challenges

Author
item GRUISSEM, WILHELM - Eth Zurich
item LEE, CHOON-HWAN - Pusan National University
item Oliver, Melvin
item POGSON, BARRY - Australian National University

Submitted to: Journal of Plant Biology
Publication Type: Other
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/27/2012
Publication Date: 9/19/2012
Citation: Gruissem, W., Lee, C., Oliver, M.J., Pogson, B. 2012. The Global Plant Council: Increasing the impact of plant research to meet global challenges. Journal of Plant Biology. 55:343-348.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Scientists and world leaders are realizing that that we have little time to radically transform agriculture, work out how to grow more food on a sustainable basis without further degrading the environment, and improve our crop plants to cope with climate changes. But how can we increase the impact of plant research to address global challenges and make world leaders more aware of the important contributions that improved crop plants can make to achieve food security? In 2009, several national plant and crop science organizations around the world met for the first time at a summit meeting convened by the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB) to discuss these problems and how their organizations and scientists could help by increasing the impact of plant research and raising awareness about opportunities for crop improvement and sustainable agriculture. This was the birth of the Global Plant Council, which was endorsed by the Presidents of sixteen plant science organizations and subsequently ratified by their boards and memberships. Since then thirteen other organizations have joined the Global Plant Council, which is becoming an important voice for plant scientists around the world (Table 1). During its first meeting in Montréal in 2010, hosted by the Canadian Society of Plant Physiologists, the Global Plant Council established its mission, identified the pressing global problems that it will address, and solidified its organizational and operational structures. The International Association for Plant Physiology (IAPP), which represented various national plant physiology societies for over 50 years, decided in 2011 to support the mission of the Global Plant Council and merge its own activities with those of the Global Plant Council. In early 2012 the Global Plant Council became a registered not-for-profit organization. More information on the Global Plant Council, its mission, and the pressing issues that the Global Plant Council will address, can be found at http://globalplantcouncil.org/