¿Cómo asegurar el futuro de la papa y otros alimentos? | Vania Azevedo | TEDxTukuy

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Climate Change and Food Production

Climate change is causing radical environmental changes, leading to lower productivity and higher food prices.
Agrobiodiversity conservation is crucial for food security and the availability of diverse and affordable food.

In situ conservation preserves plants in their natural environment or where they are traditionally managed.
Ex situ conservation preserves plants outside their natural environment in genebanks, which are repositories of plant diversity under controlled conditions.
Germoplasma refers to specialized cells containing hereditary genetic material passed down through generations.
Different conservation strategies are used depending on the plant species and their reproductive characteristics.

Seeds that can withstand dehydration and freezing are preserved in cold chambers at -20°C and can survive up to 100 years.
Plants that cannot be conserved as seeds, such as potatoes and cassava, require different conservation methods like field conservation, in vitro conservation, and cryogenics.
Cryogenics involves preserving plant cells in liquid nitrogen at -196°C, allowing them to survive for centuries.

The International Potato Center (CIP) in Lima, Peru, is part of an international consortium focused on preserving plant diversity and ensuring food security.
Nikolai Vavilov established the world's first national seed bank in 1922 to preserve crop diversity and address food production challenges.
Currently, there are over 1500 seed banks worldwide, preserving millions of plant varieties for food and agriculture.
Seed banks play a crucial role in preserving crop diversity and providing access to researchers for developing new varieties adapted to changing environmental conditions and resistant to diseases.
The Svalbard Global Seed Vault is a secure facility located in the Arctic that stores backup copies of seeds from around the world.

Seed banks face challenges, such as the loss of seed banks in Afghanistan, Syria, and the Philippines due to conflicts and natural disasters.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused disruptions to seed banks, leading to the loss of biodiversity.
The International Seed Bank of Syria was able to preserve its collection by having a backup deposit at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault.
CIP conserves over 5000 varieties of potatoes, repatriating lost varieties to farmers affected by climate change and supporting food security.
CIP also distributes germplasm to over 100 countries and conducts research on biofortified crops, such as vitamin A-enriched sweet potatoes, to address malnutrition.

Crops that cannot be preserved as seeds, such as potatoes, yams, and cassava, are being conserved through in vitro and cryogenic preservation at the International Potato Center (CIP) in Peru.
CIP is building a new facility called the Cryo Vault to serve as a backup repository for clonal crops from Latin America.