There are over 50000 medicinal aromatic plants worldwide, accounting for approximately 16% of known plant species. March 3rd this year is the 13th World Wildlife Day, with the theme of "Medicinal and Aromatic Plants: Safeguarding Health, Heritage, and Livelihoods". This has sounded the call for global efforts to strengthen the protection of medicinal aromatic plants, "Professor Xie Yi from Beijing Forestry University told reporters. The history of human use of medicinal aromatic plants can be traced back to traditional medicine in China, India, Egypt, Greece, and Rome 5000 years ago. According to statistics from the World Health Organization, over 80% of the population in 170 member countries worldwide still use traditional medicine, especially for the treatment of chronic diseases; About 40% of modern medicines, such as aspirin, artemisinin, and pediatric cancer treatment drugs, originate from medicinal plants and traditional medical culture. Currently, medicinal aromatic plants are facing severe threats to their survival. After evaluating 5411 plant species, the Royal Botanic Gardens in the UK classified 723 as critically endangered, endangered, or vulnerable. Multiple factors such as illegal trade, habitat loss, fragmentation, excessive and destructive harvesting, and climate change are intertwined, leading to the extinction risk of approximately 15000 medicinal aromatic plants, "said Xie Yi. The international community attaches great importance to the protection of medicinal aromatic plants and has listed over 1300 species in the appendices of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), implementing international trade controls. The CITES Conference of the Parties has adopted multiple decisions and resolutions to establish a standardized regulatory framework for international trade, regulate international trade, conduct comprehensive research, and provide decision-making references for global protection actions. ”Xie Yi introduced that this year's theme not only reflects the international community's consistent high attention to such plants, but also indicates that protection work still has a long way to go. China is one of the countries with the richest variety of medicinal aromatic plants in the world. The results of the fourth national survey of traditional Chinese medicine resources show that there are 15321 medicinal plants in China, accounting for about 50% of the global species, of which 3151 are endemic; There are 800-1000 species of aromatic plants, accounting for approximately 30% of the known species worldwide. According to the 2024 National Health Commission's "Catalogue of Medicinal and Food Sources and Catalogue of Common/Non Common Food Raw Materials", there are a total of 38 plant species that can be used as both medicinal and flavoring materials, accounting for over 30% of the world's commonly used medicinal and flavoring dual-use plants. China is one of the countries with the longest history of utilizing medicinal aromatic plants. Traditional Chinese medicine not only safeguards the reproduction and survival of the Chinese nation, but also protects human health by integrating with modern medical technology. ”Xie Yi said that artemisinin extracted from Artemisia annua has been used to treat malaria, saving the lives of millions of patients worldwide. In addition, China has promoted the quality and efficiency improvement of traditional industries such as Yunnan Dendrobium officinale and Guizhou prickly pear by adhering to integrity and innovation, helping local employment and income increase, and promoting comprehensive rural revitalization. China has provided a "model" and contributed "wisdom" to effectively address the threat to the survival of medicinal aromatic plants worldwide. Xie Yi introduced that China adheres to the concept of systematic conservation, coordinates the promotion of protection and utilization, and achieves the organic connection and synergistic efficiency between wild population rejuvenation and artificial breeding. Adhere to source protection, strengthen habitat management, improve natural protected areas and botanical garden systems, and provide habitat guarantee and technical support for the protection of wild populations. Adhere to legal protection, severely crack down on illegal exploitation and trade, and strictly carry out international trade in accordance with CITES compliance requirements. Xie Yi stated that China's practice has shown that based on resource endowment, through scientific protection and rational utilization, it is possible to coordinate the ecological, health, cultural and economic values of medicinal aromatic plants, achieve "development under protection, and protection under development", and provide feasible solutions to solve the contradiction between protection and development. (New Society)