SAFEGUARDING MALAYSIA’S FLORA DIVERSITY

The 1991 edition of SoNC, produced by the late Dr. Ruth Kiew laid the foundation of what will be discussed over the next three days. She, together with her collaborators have admirably and succinctly described the varied ecosystems and habitats, as well as selected floral and faunal species found in Malaysia in the 1990s. While the many of the pioneers of conservation in Malaysia are no longer with us, their legacy lives on in all of us gathered for this Symposium today.

The study of flora aims to provide a uniform description of floral species, and there is no shortage of subjects to be studied and researched in Malaysia. New floral species found in Malaysia were discovered and described every year, many of which are endemic, highly localised to a specific geographical location or habitat, and critically vulnerable to anthropogenic pressures and threats.

The thematic cluster of Flora within the 2025 State of Nature Conservation in Malaysia aims to elevate the status of floral species in Malaysia during this critical juncture, where floral species in its diversity is needed to sustain our carbon sinks, the first line of defence against the planetary crises that humanity faces.