Dr. Falk emphasized the crucial role of CPC’s Board of Trustees in shaping the organization’s trajectory, and acknowledging their contributions as guardians of institutional memory and wisdom. He expressed gratitude to longstanding board members, founding botanic partners, staff, and advisors, whose contributions and dedication have spanned CPC’s four decades. Reflecting on the origins of CPC’s logo, Dr. Falk shared an anecdote—much to the delight of the crowd. While herding sheep for an agricultural land trust on a Massachusetts island with fellow co-founder Dr. Frank Thibodeau, they were inspired to hand draw (on the back of a case of beer) the logo, which revealed itself as both resembling nurturing hands and the leaves of a plant— underscoring both CPC’s mission and grassroots beginnings.

He commended CPC’s commitment to its mission of plant conservation, praising its evolution beyond focusing solely on growing the National Collection to encompass research, rare plant reintroductions, developing partnerships, and land conservation efforts. As an author of over 150 publications, Dr. Falk encouraged the attendees to publish their experimental results to facilitate knowledge sharing and prevent redundant mistakes. In keeping with his visionary approach to ecological resilience, Dr. Falk challenged conventional views on rare plants being a sign of evolutionary failure and maladaptation, proposing instead a reframing of rare species as agents of evolutionary progress. “All species are rare when they first evolve—are they not? What if, instead of trying to protect what is on the trailing edge of evolution…we are actually working on the leading edge of evolution?”

With the 2024 National Meeting being the largest conference in our history, we are grateful to all our attendees who are at the forefront of such amazing work being done to save plants. Thank you, Dr. Falk, for this lively address and your ongoing support of our mission to save plants from extinction!