IAVS Resolutions
In January 2008 the IAVS Executive Committee approved the first formal public Resolution of IAVS. This adoption grew out of a discussion in the Council and General Assembly meetings in Swansea in 2007, and the Executive Committee and Council anticipate adopting future Resolutions as a particularly effective way to honor the aim of the Association articulated in the statutes to 'increase awareness and to disseminate knowledge about vegetation.'
The first resolution addresses biofuels, and Mike Palmer of Oklahoma State University prepared the rationale for the IAVS Resolution. "There are few regions of the world that are not experiencing the effects of an increased demand for biofuel production. In many cases, this is resulting in an intensification of agriculture. In others, it is accelerating the loss of natural vegetation. As vegetation scientists, we need to be aware that many of the systems we study are threatened. On a more positive note, our expertise on the productive capacity of vegetation is directly relevant for the science of biofuels - although the intellectual capacity of our discipline has not yet been tapped. The proposed resolution is a statement that we recognize the concern, and that vegetation scientists have a potentially important role to play during these crucial times for our biosphere."
To read the IAVS Resolution on Biofuels, visit http://www.iavs.org/biofuels.pdf
