# Presentation: 193729

## Towards a Global Strategy for the Conservation of Oat Genetic Resources

**Global Crop Diversity Trust**

**Towards a Global Strategy for the Conservation of Oat Genetic Resources**
**=****    **
- Christoph U.Germeier, Lothar Frese and Brigitte Laliberte,

## The situation of worlds genetic resources

**International agreements are in place:**
- _Convention on Biological Diversity_ (1993),
- _Global Plan of Action_ for the Conservation and Sustainable Utili-zation of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (1996),
- _International Treaty_ on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (2004).

**None of these provides for a perpetual source of funding**
- Crop diversity in the field is diminishing,
- wild relatives of crops are disappearing under cleared forests and urban sprawl,
- Even some of the world's largest and most important international genebanks are facing severe budget cuts.

## The Global Crop Diversity Trust - Initiator of the Process

**http://www.croptrust.org**

**The Global Crop Diversity Trust - Initiator of the Process**

## The Global Crop Diversity Trust - Initiator of the Process

**Activities**

**The Global Crop Diversity Trust - Initiator of the Process**

- - aims to match the long term nature of conservation needs with long term secure and sustainable funding as an element of the funding strategy of the International Treaty.

- - assist the development of a rational and efficient global system of crop diversity conservation.

- (Co-) funding of gene banks and facilities (e.g. Svalbard facilities)

- Compilation of 9 regional conservation strategies,

- - Compilations of currently 16 Global Crop Conservation Strategies exclusively for “Annex I Crops”.

## Elements of a Global Crop Strategy

**Elements of a Global Crop Strategy**

**Structure**

**Biological Status**

**Information management**

**Bilateral cooperation**

**Multilateral **
**cooperation**

- Participation

- Data contribution

- Information delivery

- Material distribution

- User provenance

- User types

- User requirements

**Cooperation**

## The Status of Oats / Avena spp.

**The Status of Oats / *****Avena***** spp.**

**Agronomic:**

- - Oat is not within the mandate of one of the CGIAR centers.

- - Oat is listed in Annex I of the International Treaty for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

- - Oat is a crop typical for and well adapted to the cooler climates (Nordic countries, Canada), but thrives well also in Australia.

- - Oat is no bread cereal, but has been a staple food for a long time in Northern Europe.

- - Oat is extraordinary in cereals regarding health promoting contents (protein, fat, ß-glucan, minerals, antioxidants, hormone analogs).

- - Oat is highly suited for sustainable, extensive production systems.

## Short Outline of Developing a Global Conservation Strategy for Oats

- 1.   Identify crop experts, collections, curators and users (breeders).

- 2.   Literature review on origin and evolution, gene pools, taxonomy and distribution, centers of diversity, use in breeding and research.

- 3.   Questionnaire to update information on oat collections.

**4.   Stakeholders and Strategy Advisory Group Workshop (Fargo).**

- 5.  Identification of major collections and their importance by analysis of information from regional conservation strategies, from the survey and by application of indicators for scoring the value of collections.

- 6.   Scoring management procedures of collections according to accepted management standards.

- 9.  Final meeting of genebank curators and stakeholders.

- 7.  Identification of networks, constraints and challenges of collaboration.

- 8.  Visit of collections eligible for funding by the trust.

- 10. 	Final report and suggestions for the allocation of funds by the trust.

## Collections:

- - FAO (1996): The state of the world's plant genetic resources for food and agriculture.
- - FAO WIEWS Database (http://apps3.fao.org/wiews/germplasm.htm)

**Relevant Information Available on Distribution  and Collections**

**Distribution: **
- - Global Biodiversity Information Facility (http://www.gbif.org, http://ge.gbif.net/).

- - USDA Genetic Resources Information Network (http://www.ars-grin.gov).
- - Canadian Genetic Resources Information Network (http://pgrc3.agr.gc.ca/acc/search-recherche_e.html).

- - European Avena Database (http://eadb.bafz.de).
- - EURISCO (http://eurisco.ecpgr.org/).

## Avena Collections throughout the World 

- FAO mentions 117 Avena collections, with 113528 accessions

- In Europe: _European __*Avena*__ DB_: 26 contributors, 32664 accessions

- _EURISCO_:  24 contributors, 31739 accessions

## Coverage of Species in World Key Collections

## Pedigrees of Oat Lines: http://avena.agr.gc.ca/OGIS/index_e.php

**Elements for an International Oat Information System**

- GRIN: http://www.ars-grin.gov/npgs/acc/acc_queries.html

- GRIN-CA: http://pgrc3.agr.gc.ca/acc/search-recherche_e.html

- OatGenes: http://avena.agr.gc.ca/oatgenes

- GrainGenes: http://wheat.pw.usda.gov

- Gelato: http://avena.agr.gc.ca/GELATO/

## Elements for an International Oat Information System

## Elements for an International Oat Information System

## Elements for an International Oat Information System

## Architecture for an International Oat Information System

**Central information**
** ****services**

## Thanks for your Attention

**Thanks for your Attention**

**Acknowledgements:**
- Funding by the Global Crop Diversity Trust,
- Angelika Schäfer-Menuhr, Severin Polreich and Angelika Doelle.
- Brigitte Laliberte for continuing support.
- All genebank curators and database managers, who responded to the questionnaire and provided additional information on their collections.