The Earth BioGenome Project 2020: Starting the clock

Abstract

November 2020 marked 2 y since the launch of the Earth BioGenome Project (EBP), which aims to sequence all known eukaryotic species in a 10-y timeframe. Since then, significant progress has been made across all aspects of the EBP roadmap, as outlined in the 2018 article describing the project’s goals, strategies, and challenges (1). The launch phase has ended and the clock has started on reaching the EBP’s major milestones. This Special Feature explores the many facets of the EBP, including a review of progress, a description of major scientific goals, exemplar projects, ethical legal and social issues, and applications of biodiversity genomics. In this Introduction, we summarize the current status of the EBP, held virtually October 5 to 9, 2020, including recent updates through February 2021. References to the nine Perspective articles included in this Special Feature are cited to guide the reader toward deeper understanding of the goals and challenges facing the EBP. It is urgent that the EBP move forward. The year 2020 marked a global failure in meeting any of the 20 “Aichi goals” for the preservation of wildlife and ecosystems (2). The International Union for Conservation of Nature now counts more than 35,000 (28%) of all surveyed species of plants and animals as threatened with extinction (3). The Earth may lose 50% of its biodiversity by the end of this century if nothing is done to mitigate the anthropogenic factors that drive species to extinction and destroy the health of global ecosystems that sustain human existence (2). Degradation of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems has continued unabated, and we may soon face the possibility of massive ecosystem collapse on a global scale. Such a collapse would have an enormous impact not only on biodiversity, but also on global political stability, and might ultimately affect the survival … [↵][1]1To whom correspondence may be addressed. Email: lewin{at}ucdavis.edu. [1]: #xref-corresp-1-1