Taxonomy & Macroecology

Our research

• African Forest Trees

  • Building on 20 years of research in Central Africa, our work on forest tree taxonomy and ecology supports sustainable forest management.

• Southeast Asia

  • We study Southeast Asia’s rich but threatened flora to deliver vital taxonomic data and support species and habitat conservation.

• Cryptogams

  • Our research on cryptogamic plants and fungi, supports genomics, biodiversity monitoring, conservation, policy, and public engagement.

• South Asia

  • Working with international partners, we build floristic knowledge to guide conservation and support sustainable use of natural resources in South Asia.

• Global Biomes

  • We research the distribution, ecology, and dynamics of global biomes to support conservation, restoration, and sustainable land management in the face of climate change.

• Economic Plants

  • Our taxonomic research on crop wild relatives and key plant species supports breeding, sustainable resource use, forest monitoring, conservation, and restoration.

• World Flora Online

  • RBGE helps lead World Flora Online—a global, open-access database of plant species—advancing its classification and infrastructure.

• Data Systems

  • We develop data protocols and digital tools that enhance RBGE’s biodiversity research and its contribution to solving global environmental issues.

• Professional Journals

  • We publish two peer-reviewed, diamond open-access journals: Edinburgh Journal of Botany and Sibbaldia, an international journal of botanic garden horticulture.

Discover more

• Conservation Science
• Preserved Collections
• Biodiversity Genomics and Analytics
• Science Staff Directory