A growing worldwide realization that biodiversity is fundamental to agricultural production and food security, as well as a valuable constituent of environmental conservation have been clearly observed. The importance of biodiversity and its conservation can not be overemphasized. The present text book 'Plant Resource Utilization and Conservation'covers the syllabi of M.Sc. Botany final year students of most of the Indian Universities and particularly the syllabus recently recommended by the University Grants Commission. Book covers chapters on Biodiversity; Sustainable development; Origin of agriculture and Worlds centres of primary diversity of domesticated plants. Economic importance of food; Forage and fodder crops; Medicinal plants; Aromatic and essential oils; vegetable oils and fats; Plant fibres; Timber yielding plants; Tannin and dyes yielding plants; Gums and resins; Pulp and paper etc. have been given in detail. Chapters on Green revolution; Avenue trees and Plants in pollution control have been dealt with clarity and recent information. Book also includes chapters on Principles of conservation; Strategies for in-situ and ex-situ conservation and General asccount of national agencies (ICAR, CSIR, BSI, NBPGR & DBT). This book will definitely serve as an excellent reading and reference material for students of Botany, researchers environmentalists, Agriculture scientists and forest personnels. We hope that students preparing for competitive examinations may also find the book useful.

The food is an essential requirement of human beings. The prehistoric humans primarily got their food from the wild edible plants but since the time passed, they started to cultivate the wild plants. The traditions of those prehistoric humans take very prominent part in the origin of cultivation of plants. The domestication of plants is the starting step in the direction of a full- fledged agricultural economy. A plant is refers to as domestic when its natural characteristics got improved too much therefore it is hard to grow and reproduce those plant without human participation. It is thought the domestication is the co-evolutionary outcome of the symbiotic relationship between humans and the plants because plants and human behaviours evolve to suit one another. The humans started harvesting of plants selectively based on some precise characteristics of plants like taste, size, colour and many more. They stored and utilize the seeds of those specific plants for further cultivation.

Before the concept of history began, humans undoubtedly acquired life benefits by discovering medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) that were food and medicine. Today, a variety of available herbs and spices are used and enjoyed throughout the world and continue to promote good health. The international market is also quite welcoming for MAPs and essential oils. The increasing environment and nature conscious buyers encourage producers to produce high quality essential oils. These consumer choices lead to growing preference for organic and herbal based products in the world market. As the benefits of medicinal and aromatic plants are recognized, these plants will have a special role for humans in the future. Until last century, the production of botanicals relies to a large degree on wild-collection. However, the increasing commercial collection, largely unmonitored trade, and habitat loss lead to an incomparably growing pressure on plant populations in the wild. Therefore, medicinal and aromatic plants are of high priority for conservation. Given the above, we bring forth a comprehensive volume, “Medicinal and Aromatic Plants: Healthcare and Industrial Applications”, highlighting the various healthcare, industrial and pharmaceutical applications that are being used on these immensely important MAPs and its future prospects. This collection of chapters from the different areas dealing with MAPs caters to the need of all those who are working or have interest in the above topic.

This anchor volume to the series Managing Global Genetic Resources examines the structure that underlies efforts to preserve genetic material, including the worldwide network of genetic collections; the role of biotechnology; and a host of issues that surround management and use. Among the topics explored are in situ versus ex situ conservation, management of very large collections of genetic material, problems of quarantine, the controversy over ownership or copyright of genetic material, and more.

Ethnobotanical knowledge is a major component of indigenous knowledge systems which refers to a cumulative body of traditional knowledge about the interaction between human societies and the plant kingdom, and more specifically, how local people perceive, manage, and utilize the plant resources around them. This study examines the utilization of indigenous botanical plant resources in the former Kakamega District, Kenya. The study focuses on creating an inventory of indigenous botanical plant resources, their use, gender dynamics, impact of new technology, conservation measures and the quest for sustainable development.

The recent development of ideas on biodiversity conservation was already being considered almost three-quarters of a century ago for crop plants and the wild species related to them, by the Russian geneticist N.!. Vavilov. He was undoubtedly the first scientist to understand the impor tance for humankind of conserving for utilization the genetic diversity of our ancient crop plants and their wild relatives from their centres of diversity. His collections showed various traits of adaptation to environ mental extremes and biotypes of crop diseases and pests which were unknown to most plant breeders in the first quarter of the twentieth cen tury. Later, in the 1940s-1960s scientists began to realize that the pool of genetic diversity known to Vavilov and his colleagues was beginning to disappear. Through the replacement of the old, primitive and highly diverse land races by uniform modem varieties created by plant breed ers, the crop gene pool was being eroded. The genetic diversity of wild species was equally being threatened by human activities: over-exploita tion, habitat destruction or fragmentation, competition resulting from the introduction of alien species or varieties, changes and intensification of land use, environmental pollution and possible climate change.