DOI: 10.1002/ppp3.10512 ISSN: 2572-2611

30 by 30 for plant diversity: How can we protect more of nature?

Timothy Harris, Gianluigi Ottaviani, Mark Mulligan, Neil Brummitt
  • Horticulture
  • Plant Science
  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
  • Forestry

Societal Impact Statement

Proposals to increase protected area networks to 30% of land area globally will, given habitat conversion, require ecosystem restoration. Trait‐based approaches provide tools for this and highlight priorities for protected area expansion—both where functional diversity has the highest values and where it is higher than expected given species richness. Maps of sampled angiosperm species from across Africa show where these diversity metrics deviate. These maps also show the 30% of land with greatest potential to support functional diversity at national and continental scales, of which less than a quarter is protected, demonstrating the need for coordinated trans‐national plant conservation efforts.

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