Science Collections Strategy 2026-2035. Meise Botanic Garden.

Meise Botanic Garden's Science Collections Strategy 2026–2035 outlines a plan for maintaining and enhancing the Garden's science collections to support scientific research, conservation, and public engagement over the next decade. With over 225 years of history, the Garden manages a diverse collection including living plants, seeds, herbarium specimens, molecular samples, library resources and archives. These collections are essential for understanding biodiversity, addressing challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and food security, and fulfilling international commitments, including the Global Biodiversity Framework and the EU Biodiversity strategy for 2030. Over the past decade, we have made significant progress in digitising our collections, with three million herbarium specimens accessible online via platforms like the Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Building further on these achievements, the strategy focuses on improving access, preservation, and the scientific relevance of our collections. The strategy also reaffirms our long-standing Central African partnerships, supporting the restoration and digitisation of key collections and strengthening regional capacity for biodiversity research. The strategy is guided by five key ambitions: 1. Strengthening the impact of our collections for research, conservation, and policymaking: Prioritising taxa and regions of expertise, adopting technologies such as DNA sequencing and artificial intelligence, and ensure collections meet research and conservation needs. 2. Securing the collections for future generations: Upgrading collection facilities, enhancing preservation standards, and implementing a unified collection management system. 3. Expanding global access to our collections and their data: Increasing digitisation efforts, improving online accessibility, and developing tools to enhance data curation and interoperability. 4. Engaging the public with biodiversity through collections: Developing new exhibitions and interactive platforms to connect broader audiences with the collections, fostering public understanding of biodiversity. 5. Strengthening our position as a global centre of excellence in collections and data: Strengthening expertise in biodiversity informatics, sustainable collection management, and international collaboration.

Dutch version: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18549373