Session I: Biodiversity, Genetic Resources and Crop Improvement

Biodiversity and genetic resources form the bedrock of global food and nutritional security. This session explores the critical role of tuber crops biodiversity in enhancing yield, resilience and sustainability in the face of climate change and environmental degradation. As modern agriculture grapples with genetic uniformity and ecosystem pressures, the strategic conservation and utilization of genetic resources has never been more urgent. This session aims to foster dialogue among researchers, policymakers, breeders, conservationists, and stakeholders to share knowledge and innovations in crop improvement using diverse genetic resources, including landraces, wild relatives, and underutilized species.

A. Biodiversity

• Role of biodiversity in agroecosystem resilience
• Agrobiodiversity and climate change adaptation

B. Genetic Resources and Conservation

• Ex situ and In situ conservation strategies of plant genetic resources
• Genebanks and cryopreservation techniques for long-term storage
• Domestication genomics: insights from wild ancestors

C. Genetic Improvement and Breeding Technologies

• Conventional breeding and molecular breeding for root and tuber crops improvement
• Marker-assisted selection and genomic selection in crop breeding
• Genome editing tools (CRISPR/Cas9) in enhancing crop traits
• Harnessing landraces and underutilized crops for future food security
• Pre-breeding and introgression of traits from wild relatives

D. Bioinformatics and Genomic Resources

• Crop pangenomes and their role in diversity studies
• Databases and decision support tools for germplasm utilization
• Application of AI and machine learning in plant breeding
• High-throughput phenotyping and genotyping platforms
• Comparative genomics for trait discovery across species
• Bioinformatics and statistical genomics pipelines
• Genotype × Environment (GxE) interaction analysis
• Genomic selection and prediction
• Multi-omics data integration

E. Policy, Ethics, and Community Engagement

• Access and benefit sharing mechanisms in biodiversity utilization
• Farmer-led conservation and participatory breeding
• Strengthening global collaboration for genetic resource conservation