Outside of St. Petersburg, Russia, the Pavlovsk experimental station houses a vast collection of priceless seeds: strawberries, cherries, raspberries and many more – more than 4,000 varieties. First assembled by Nikolai Vavilov, the inventor of the modern seed bank, this collection will be vital as scientists race to breed new crops that resist the rising tide of disease, pests and drought. 90 percent of the seeds at Pavlovsk can be found nowhere else.

And today, they are facing demolition to make way for a real estate developer’s “commercial cottages”.

Here’s what you can do. Tweet this message to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev:

@KremlinRussia_E Mr. President, protect the future of agriculture - save Pavlovsk station! http://bit.ly/Pavlovsk

Or take a moment to write a letter online
Please click here for key points to include in your letter
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(11 July 2010) A new collection of some of North America’s hottest foods was today delivered to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault by a bipartisan delegation from the US Congress.
Download Press Release
Read more on the BBC

(6 July 2010) A terrifying but almost forgotten disease, wheat rust is not just back after a 50-year absence, but spreading in new and scary forms. The most effective – and cheapest – way to fight it is to breed wheat varieties that are naturally resistant to the disease. But our ability to do so is hampered by decades of underfunding.
Read more in The Economist
Read more in the Financial Times

(25 June 2010) If you would like to take action to save the Pavlovsk experimental station, please consider writing to the Russian President to register your concern over the imminent destruction, during the International Year of Biodiversity, of this unique, and irreplaceable, collection of fruits and berries - a vital resource for Russian and international agriculture.
Letters can be sent online here
Read more in The Independent

(25 June 2010) The world’s largest collection of fruits and berries, held at the Pavlovsk experimental station in Russia, could be demolished later this year to allow for the construction of private homes. Trust Director Cary Fowler is calling for scientists to help prevent “the largest intentional, preventable loss of crop diversity in my lifetime – during the International Year of Biodiversity”.
Read more

(14 June 2010) Awareness is growing that agriculture will not simply adapt itself to climate change, and the important role of genebanks in helping crops adapt to new climates has been underlined in a new paper in Evolutionary Applications.
Read summary

(7 June 2010) Vegetation around the world is on the move, and climate change is the culprit. A new analysis paints a frightening picture as approximately one billion people now live in areas that are highly vulnerable. Meaning that crops must be adapted to these new conditions, and that genebanks are vital for conservation as conditions change in in the field.
Read more

(3 June 2010) A fire broke out Monday at the World Vegetable Centre (AVRDC) in Taiwan, in the new and still unfinished extension to the genebank building. Fortunately, no one was injured and the genebank housing AVRDC’s priceless collection of crop diversity was unharmed – but it is yet another reminder of the vulnerability of all genebanks.

(14 May 2010) Routine maintenance is scheduled to begin shortly at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. To read more, click here.