This report focuses on central Asia and Mongolia, rich in both genetic resources and traditional knowledge. The paper highlights the rich biodiversity of the region, the origin of many wild cultivars of domesticated crops of importance to the world, such as apricots and walnuts, as well as of endemic medicinal plants such as liquorice and Trans-Caspian thyme. The paper reports on a series of workshops organised by the United Nations University. The principal aim of the workshops was to assist countries within the region to conserve and use their biological diversity in a sustainable manner.
