We've come a long way in defining and categorizing conservation, but we have further to travel. How much biological consumption does it take to fulfill the needs of civilization? That really isn't the key question, however. What counts more is whether each succeeding generation must settle for an increasingly degraded world and know the experience of the past from books and pictures only. Must the future be satisfied with the mediocrity because nothing better will be known?

The biological, material, and cultural value of biological diversity for present and future generations is an important reason for conserving it today. Diversity is a potential source for immense untapped material wealth in the form of food, medicine and amenities. Human cultures co-evolve with their environment, and the conservation of biological diversity can be important for cultural identity throughout the world. The natural environment provides for many of the inspirational, aesthetic, spiritual, and educational needs of people of all cultures, now and in the future.

Our world is a finite space with exact dimensions. The total surface area of the earth is 196,950,000 square miles. Of that, thirty percent is land, and seventy percent is water. To many people, the resources are endless, bountiful and self-regenerating. But are they? Let us take a look at the facts.

The biological riches of the world are passing through a small window destined to last another fifty years or more. The human population has exceeded 5.4 billion, is projected to reach 8.5 billion by 2025. It may level off at 10 to 15 billion by mid century.

Close to 55,000 square miles of rainforest are being destroyed every year. Of the eight million square miles of tropical rainforest that once encircled the equatorial region of the planet only 3.4 million square miles, less than half, remains. In this region we find the vast majority of plant species, including orchids. Ecuador is one of the most orchid-rich countries in the world. Deforestation rates vary from country to country and from year to year, but one trend has remained generally constant; deforestation rates are increasing and have nearly doubled in the last ten years.

Endangered species are described as, "plant and animal species that are in danger of extinction. The dying off of all individuals of the species." One out of eight of the worlds plant species is threatened by extinction. Out of an estimated total of 270,000 plant species, scientist put more than 34,000 (almost 13%) of them at risk. Of these, 1,779 species belong to the Orchidaceae family. These figures are from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Plants. Please remember, this is a listing of a global scale, and there are many more species threatened at a national or regional level than are listed in this book. Scientist tell us that 334 mammals, 274 birds, 114 reptiles, 25 amphibians, 118 fishes, 23 snails, 71 clams, 19 crustaceans, 41 insects and 5 arachnids are threatened by extinction. Of these 1,024 species only 342 have recovery plans. Recovery is the process by which the decline of an endangered or threatened species is arrested or reversed, and threats neutralized so that its survival in the wild can be ensured. Currently we have a status survey and conservation action plan for the Orchidaceae family, published by The World Conservation Union (I.U.C.N.) No more than one tenth of the estimated 10-50 million species of invertebrates have even been described. Thousands of different species become extinct each year before biologists can identify them.

The primary causes of species extinction and endangerment are habitat destruction, commercial exploitation (such as plant collecting in undisturbed habitat, hunting, and trade in animal parts), damage caused by non-native plants and animals introduced into an area, and pollution. Of all of these causes direct habitat destruction threatens the most species. And humankind has a direct link to all of these reasons.

If humankind is the cause of this great destruction, we also hold the solution to its recovery.

Although the importance of conservation may seem obvious, most of the world's people live too close to the margin of existence to exercise concern for any more than their immediate survival and well being. Planning for the future becomes difficult when the present itself is in doubt, and activities which could help tomorrow's generations may seem quixotic to those for whom survival is at stake. Thus, while conservation has made great strides in some areas of the world, it is still too soon for people to have any feelings of security about the future of the environment.

This is why the timeliness of our actions is so important. We have a wonderful opportunity to discuss, theorize, educate, and address these important orchid conservation issues at the 16th World Orchid Conference to be held in Vancouver, BC, April 22, 1999 to May 3, 1999. The theme of the conference is conservation. A conservation poster session, with entries from around the world, will be displayed throughout the duration of the conference. There will be a fine offering of the many other aspects of orchid culture that are also important to the hobbyist, the scientist, and commercial grower. The increasing number of alliances will have the opportunity of a gathering where future plans may be laid, and as with all world orchid conferences a generous display of our treasured orchids. The World Orchid Conference offers us an appropriate occasion to help ensure the recovery of the Orchidaceae family. Come and lend your support to the implementation of these recovery plans.

With great hope and expectation let us formalize and put into action the knowledge accumulated at the 16th World Orchid Conference, and future conferences, for the sake of the recovery and restoration of this marvelous planet in which we live.