Let’s Liberate Diversity | Florence, Italy | May 24, 2026
This presentation, delivered at the Let’s Liberate Diversity event on May 24, 2026, examines the role of genebanks, breeding innovation, and governance frameworks in shaping democratic seed systems. Presenters from University of Wisconsin–Madison, Organic Seed Alliance, and CIMMYT describe CIMMYT’s germplasm holdings (over 28,000 maize and 124,000 wheat samples) and note operational facts: CIMMYT ships roughly half a million seed packages annually to 800 partners in over 100 countries. The talk highlights that CIMMYT’s permanent collections are governed under Article 15 of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA), distributed under the SMTA, and held “in trust for humanity,” while derived breeding products may have different legal arrangements. Exchange statistics (approximately 2.6 million accessions exchanged between 2007–2025 and large CGIAR contributions to distributed materials) are presented to show the scale of multilateral germplasm sharing. The presenters also address policy and governance challenges: intellectual property and licensing practices that create “data blanks,” constrain public research, and risk homogenization of seed systems (with examples from maize and GMO-related concerns). The session includes small-group dialogues and a segment on strategic recommendations, and emphasizes the importance of in situ conservation, rematriation, and community stewardship alongside ex situ collections.
Key topics: genebanks, ITPGRFA, SMTA, germplasm exchange, intellectual property, seed sovereignty, in situ conservation, data gaps, LLD Forum, LLD2026
