Format: ORAL

J. Sebastin Tello1, Leslie Cayola1,2, Carla Maldonado2, Gabriel Arellano3,4, Manuel J. Maca5,6, Beatriz Nieto Ariza7,2 and Alfredo F. Fuentes1,2

1. Latin America Department, Missouri Botanical Garden, St, Louis, MO, United States of America. 2. Herbario Nacional de Bolivia (LPB), La Paz, Bolivia. 3. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. 4. Oikobit LLC, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. 5. Departamento de Biología, Área de Botánica, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain. 6. Centro de Investigación en Biodiversidad y Cambio Global (CIBC-UAM), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain. 7. Karlsruher Institut für Technologie, Karlsruhe, Germany.

The Madidi Project stands as a testament to the power of collaborative botanical research, particularly in tropical regions, where biodiversity remains largely undocumented despite centuries of study. Spearheaded by the Missouri Botanical Garden and the Herbario Nacional de Bolivia, along with a consortium of researchers and institutions, the Madidi Project represents a multifaceted approach to botanical exploration. Key elements of the project include floristic surveys, the establishment of an extensive network of forest plots, the collection of functional trait data, the gathering of information for population genetics and phylogenetics, and ethnobotanical research with several local communities. The data obtained from this project have been instrumental in studies aimed at understanding the dynamics of biodiversity. Notably, the project has shed light on the evolution of species in response to large-scale environmental changes in the geological past, as well as shifts in species distributions and the composition of forest communities in response to recent climate change. Increasingly, a significant application of the data from the Madidi Project lies in its contribution to conservation. It provides critical information that aids in identifying priority areas for conservation and informs the decision-making processes of policymakers in the regions affected by the project. Importantly, the project has served as a platform to train a large number of students, particularly in Bolivia, by addressing a major gap in local capacity for research and conservation. The Madidi Project, therefore, not only enhances our understanding of tropical biodiversity but also plays a significant role in guiding conservation strategies in Bolivia. Major conservation challenges remain in Bolivia as in Latin America and the Tropics. The Madidi Project as well as other major scientific initiatives should simultaneously contribute to efforts to understand and preserve natural places for the benefit of biodiversity and people.