Centres of Plant Diversity

Initiative to classify biodiverse areas

Centres of Plant Diversity (CPD) was established in 1998 as a joint classification initiative between the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature intended to identify the areas in the world that are of the highest conservation value in terms of protecting the highest number of plant species.[1] In 1998 there were 234 Centers of Plant Diversity registered across the globe, each bearing a rich diversity of endemic plant species that are of great value to humans and their native ecosystems that tend to be under unique edaphic conditions.[2] Many CPD's are enlisted as a part of a legally protected area though they do not necessarily have legal protection automatically assigned to them. A CPD Is recognised primarily as a portion of a greater protected area that holds particularly significant biodiversity, likely to have a high number of irreplaceable plant species which are of high vulnerability.[citation needed]

## See also[edit]

* World Wildlife Fund
* International Union for Conservation of Nature
* Protected areas
* Biodiversity

## References[edit]

1. ^ WWF and IUCN Centres of Plant Diversity: a guide and strategy for their conservation (Cambridge: World Wide Fund for Nature and IUCN, 1994-1997)
2. ^ EarthTrends: The Environmental Information Portal, Endemic Bird Areas and Centers of Plant Diversity in Forests Archived May 15, 2011, at the Wayback Machine

## External links[edit]

* A-Z of Areas of Biodiversity Importance: Centres of Plant Diversity (CPB)
* World Wildlife Fund Official Site; Safeguarding the Natural World: Forests
IUCN Global Strategy for Plant Conservation
* United Nations Environment Programme: Protected Areas Programme