7th Meeting of the Hellenic Network of Botanical Gardens

The Philodassiki Botanical Garden was represented at the 7th Meeting of the Hellenic Network of Botanical Gardens (November 6th, 2025) by Sophia Stathatou, Garden Curator, Katerina Goula, Scientific Advisor of the Garden, Nikos Pangas, Technical Director of the Mt. Hymettus Aesthetic Forest, and Panos Kafousias, Director of Philodassiki.

Below you can find the Press Release from the meeting:

7th Meeting of the Hellenic Network of Botanical Gardens – Strengthening Collaboration for the Protection and Conservation of Greek Flora

On Thursday, 6 November 2025, the 7th Meeting of the Network of the Hellenic Network of Botanical Gardens took place at the welcoming facilities of APIVITA in Markopoulo, Attica, on the occasion of the inauguration of the renewed “APIVITA Bee Botanic Garden.”

Representatives from nine Botanical Gardens across Greece participated both in person and online, along with invited guests and APIVITA personnel. Participants were guided through the new sections of the Garden by Mr. Nikos Thymakis, head of the team responsible for its recent redesign. In a symbolic act of planting, the Balkan Botanic Garden of Kroussia offered a wild rose (Rosa canina), highlighting the importance of conserving Greece’s native plant species.

As part of the meeting, Dr. Eleni Maloupa – Curator of the Balkan Botanic Garden of Kroussia and scientific associate of the Natural Environment and Climate Change Agency (NECCA) – presented the results of the program on the ex situ conservation of Greek flora, implemented under a contract assigned by NECCA. The primary aim of the project was to examine the ex situ conservation of native plant species through the documentation of existing collections in seed banks, genetic resource banks, and botanical gardens – either as living collections or DNA samples – contributing to national and international conservation strategies. Key objectives included:

• Updating information on Greece’s Botanical Gardens
• Documenting and assessing their plant collections
• Recording the current status and needs for the creation of a digital system for storing and managing genomic data of plant species
• Preparing a framework for the establishment, organizational structure, staffing, and legal status of the Balkan Botanic Garden of Kroussia and the Laboratory for the Protection and Utilization of Native Species
• Providing an overview of the international Botanical Gardens network and the Nagoya Protocol on access to genetic resources and benefit-sharing

This collaboration aims not only to build a reliable national database of living collections of Greek native plants, but also to highlight the need for formal institutional recognition of ex situ conservation by the relevant Ministries. Such recognition would allow for systematic monitoring, evaluation, and protection of plant collections, strengthening the scientific and educational mission of Greece’s Botanical Gardens.

Dr. Nikos Pangas (Philodassiki) presented a historical overview of the establishment of the Network, emphasizing the longstanding efforts toward collaboration and coordination among Greek Botanical Gardens.

During the meeting, representatives of the nine Gardens discussed organizational matters of the Network and unanimously elected Dr. Eleni Maloupa as the National Representative to Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI) and to the consortium of National Representatives in Europe.

The Hellenic Network of Botanical Gardens – Mission & Vision

The process of forming the Network began on 26 April 2007, and the founding Charter was officially signed on 14 October 2017 by twelve Botanical Gardens in Greece.

The Network’s mission is to:

• Facilitate collaboration and synergies among its members
• Promote the protection and conservation of Greek flora, both in situ and ex situ
• Define the role of Greek Botanical Gardens as centers of knowledge, education, and conservation
• Serve as a strategic environmental policy tool, aligning national efforts with international biodiversity commitments

The Network’s work focuses on safeguarding plant diversity, educating and raising public awareness, and creating structures for long-term monitoring and institutional support for plant collections.

Institutional recognition of ex situ conservation remains a top priority, ensuring that Botanical Gardens are formally acknowledged as official bodies for the protection of Greek flora under the supervision of the competent Ministries.

Founding Members of the Hellenic Network of Botanical Gardens

• Balkan Botanic Garden of Kroussia
• Philodassiki Botanical Garden
• Kefalonia Botanical Garden
• Botanical Garden of Stavroupoli – Municipality of Pavlos Melas
• Park for the Preservation of Flora and Fauna
• Forest Botanic Garden – Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
• Hippocratic Botanic Garden of Kos
• Hippocratic Botanical Garden of Lemnos – University of the Aegean
• National Garden
• The Apollon - Delphi Botanic Garden
• Hippocratic Botanical Garden of Markopoulo (APIVITA Bee Botanic Garden)
• Garden of Enviromental Education – Thermi (ELGO)