Nikolai Vavilov had anticipated the loss of biodiversity of plant life and, over decades of research and travels around the world, found a way of preserving it. For political and ideological reasons, Vavilov was starved to death in the basement of a Soviet prison. His name was gradually forgotten on either side of the Iron Curtain. A hundred years after his first expedition, the photographer Mario Del Curto has tried to retrace his steps. He encountered those who, against all odds, have carried on Vavilov’s work of surveying, selecting, and preserving food crop seeds. This is an essential book on the preservation of subsistence plants and the role of seed banks. Thanks to its unique photographic narrative and contributions by world-renowned scientists, the book is indispensable for all those concerned not only about ecology, but also about the type of agriculture capable of addressing future food shortages.
Les graines du monde
Published by Actes Sud
€45
