As Seen on the Rare Plant Academy: 2025 National Meeting Presentations

Each year, CPC’s National Meeting brings together leaders in rare plant conservation to share knowledge, exchange ideas, and inspire collaboration. If you weren’t able to join us in Saint Louis at the Missouri Botanical Garden this past May—or if you’d like to revisit the presentations—you can now watch 2025 National Meeting recordings on the Rare Plant Academy Video Library.

One of  the many inspiring presentations was a lightning talk from the Office of Kentucky Nature Preserves (OKNP), Kentucky’s natural heritage and natural areas program. OKNP leads a wide range of in situ and ex situ projects aimed at protecting the state’s botanical diversity.

In this presentation, Tara Littlefield, OKNP’s Plant Conservation and Biological Assessment Manager, highlights recent projects and advances—including the successful transplantation of nearly 1,000 White fringeless orchid (Platanthera integrilabia) plants into high-quality wetland habitat this past April. This marks the first-ever introduction of a rare orchid in Kentucky and a major milestone in strengthening the state’s botanical capacity.

Explore this talk and many more by visiting the RPA Video Library to catch up on all the conservation insights shared at the 2025 National Meeting.