Global Taxonomy Initiative
Franklinia alatamaha (Theaceae), in cultivation at Cornell University Ithaca NY. Franklinia was last seen in the wild in the early 19th century, it is extinct in the wild and all plants in cultivation are thought to come from seeds collected by William Bartram in the late 18th century.
Taxonomy is the science of identifying and naming the species of plants, animals and micro-organisms of the world. It is a vital component of biodiversity management.
Approximately 1.7 million species have so far been identified and named. There may be as many as 30 million species living on the Earth today.
While there are many species still to be described, there are too few taxonomists to do the job. Most of these taxonomists work in relatively biodiversity-poor countries in the north. For biodiversity conservation they are most needed in the biodiversity-rich developing countries of the tropics.
The Global Taxonomy Initiative (GTI) was created under the Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) to provide the taxonomic information and expertise needed to support implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
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National Focal Point
Each country that is a party to the CBD is charged with nominating a National Focal Point for the GTI. The National Focal Point acts as a central point of contact for national centres of taxonomic expertise and as a link for information sharing to other countries through their respective focal points. The Museum is the UK's National Focal Point for the GTI.
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UK taxonomic needs assessment
The UK Taxonomic Needs Assessment identifies the taxonomic information required for biodiversity conservation in the UK.
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The UK Register of Taxonomic Expertise
The GTI National Focal Point has compiled a Register of Practising Taxonomists for the UK
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GTI Programme of Work
The aims and objectives of the GTI have been set out in a Programme of Work. All those countries that are parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity have agreed to implement the programme of work, and to nominate a person or an institution to be their National Focal Point and co-ordinate implementation.