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You know, it's a big privilege for me

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to be working in one of the
biodiversity hotspots in the world:

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the Mascarene Islands in the Indian Ocean.

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These islands — Mauritius,
Rodrigues, and Réunion —

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along with the island of Madagascar,

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they are blessed with unique plants

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found nowhere else in the world.

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And today I will tell you about five of them

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and their particular features

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and why these plants are so unique.

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Take a look at this plant.

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I call it "Benjoin" in the local vernacular,

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and the botanical name is terminalia bentzoe,

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subspecies bentzoe.

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This subspecies is endemic to Mauritius,

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and its particular feature

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is its heterofelicity.

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What do I mean by heterofelicity?

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It's that the same plant

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has got leaves that are different shapes and sizes.

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Now, these plants have evolved

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very far away from the mainland,

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and within specific ecosystems.

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Often, these particular features

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have evolved as a response to the threat

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presented by the local fauna,

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in this case, grazing tortoises.

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Tortoises are known to have poor eyesight,

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and as such, they tend to avoid the plants

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they don't recognize.

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So this evolutionary foil safeguards the plant

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against these rather cute animals,

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and protects it and of course ensures its survival.

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Now the question you're probably asking yourself is,

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why is she telling us all these stories?

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The reason for that is that we tend to overlook

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the diversity and the variety of the natural world.

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These particular habitats are unique

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and they are host to a whole [???] of plants.

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We don't realize how valuable

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and how precious these resources are,

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and yet, through our insouciance,

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we keep on destroying them.

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You know, we're all familiar

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with the macro impact of urbanization,

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climate change, resource exploitation,

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but when that one last plant,

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or animal for that matter,

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when that very last specimen

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has disappeared from the face of this Earth,

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we would have lost

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an entire subset of the Earth's biology,

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and with it, important plants with medicinal potential

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or which could have ingredients

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that would speak to the cosmetic,

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nutrition, pharma,

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and even the ethno-veterinary sectors,

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be gone forever.

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And here we have a very prime example

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of the iconic dodo, which comes from Mauritius,

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and which we know is now a symbol of extinction.

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And we know plants have a fundamental role to play.

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Well first of all, it feeds us,

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and they also give us the oxygen we breathe,

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but plants are also the source

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of important, biologically active ingredients

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that we should be studying very carefully,

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because you know, human societies over the millenia

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they have developed important knowledge,

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cultural traditions,

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and important plant-based medicinal resources.

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Here's a data point:

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1.4 percent of the entire land surface

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are home to 40 percent of
the species of higher plants,

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35 percent of the species of vertebrates,

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and these 1.4 percent

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represent the 25 biodiversity hotspots in the world,

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and this 1.4 percent of the entire land surface

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already provide for 35 percent

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of the ecosystem services

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that vulnerable people depend on.

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And as you can see,

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the island of Mauritius

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where I work and where I live,

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belongs to one such biodiversity hotspot,

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and I study the unique plants

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on the island for their biomedical applications.

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Now, let's go back again

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to that first plant I showed you,

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the one with different-shaped leaves

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and different sizes, terminalia bentzoe,

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subspecies bentzoe,

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a plant only found in Mauritius.

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Now, the local people,

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they used a decoction of the leaves

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against infectious diseases.

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Now, our work that is

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the scientific validation of this traditional information

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has shown that precisely

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the leaf extract shows activity, potent activity,

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against a wide range of bacteria

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that could be pathogenic to humans.

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Now, could this plant be the answer

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to antibiotic resistance?

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You know, antibiotic resistance is proving to be

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a big challenge globally.

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While we may not be sure, one thing is certain:

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we will not want this plant to disappear.

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But the harsh reality is that

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this particular plant is in fact

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considered to be vulnerable

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in its natural habitat.

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This brings me to another example.

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This bush here is known as baume de l'isle plate

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in the local vernacular.

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The botanical name is psiadia arguta.

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It's a plant which is rare,

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which is endemic to Mauritius.

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It used to grow on the mainland,

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but through the sheer pressures of urbanization

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has been pushed out of the mainland,

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and we've managed to bring it back

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from the brink of extinction

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by developing in vitro plants

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which are now growing in the wild.

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Now, one thing I must point out straightaway

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is that not all plants

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can be developed in vitro.

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While we humans, we are happy in our comfort zone,

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these plants also need

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their ecosystem to be preserved,

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and they don't react, endemic plants

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don't react to very harsh changes in their ecosystem,

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and yet we know, what are the challenges

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that climate change, for example,

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is posing to these plants.

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Now, the local people again use the leaves

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in traditional medicine

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against respiratory problems.

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Now, our preliminary labwork

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on the leaf extract have shown

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that precisely these leaves contain ingredients

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that are very closely, in terms of structures,

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chemical structures, to those medicines

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which are sold in the chemist's shop

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against asthma.

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So who knows

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what humanity will benefit from

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should this plant decide to reveal all its secrets.

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Now, I come from the developing world

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where we are forever being challenged with this issue

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of population explosion.

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Africa is the continent which is getting younger,

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and whenever one talks about population explosion,

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one talks about the issue of food security

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as being the other side of the same coin.

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Now this plant here, the baobab,

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could be part of the answer.

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It's an underutilized, neglected food plant.

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It defines the landscape of West Africa,

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where it is known as the tree of life,

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and later on I will tell you why

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the Africans consider it to be the tree of life.

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Now interestingly, there are many legends

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which are associated with this plant.

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Because of its sheer size,

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it was meant to be lording over lesser plants,

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so God didn't like this arrogance,

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uprooted it, and planted it upside down,

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hence its particular shape.

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And if you look at this tree again

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within the African context,

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in West Africa, it's known as the palaver tree,

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because it performs great social functions.

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Now if you have a problem in the community,

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meeting under the palaver tree

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with the chiefs or the tribesmen

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would be synonymous to trying to find a solution

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to that particular problem,

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and also to reinforce trust and respect

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among members of the community.

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From the scientific point of view,

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there are eight species of baobab in the world.

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There's one from Africa,

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one from Australia,

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and six are endemic

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to the island of Madagascar.

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The one I have showed you

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is the one from Africa,

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adansonia digitata.

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Now, the flower, this beautiful white flower,

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it opens at night, is pollinated by bats,

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and it gives rise to the fruit

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which is curiously known

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as the monkey apple.

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You know, the monkey are not stupid animals.

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They know what's good for them.

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Now, if you open the fruit of the baobab,

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you'll see a white, floury pulp

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which is very rich in nutrients

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and has got proteins,

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more proteins than that in human milk.

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Yes, you heard right:

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more protein than in human milk.

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And this is one of the reasons why

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the nutrition companies of this world,

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they are looking for this fruit to provide

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what we know as reinforce food.

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The seeds give an oil, a very stable oil

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which is sought after by the cosmetic industry

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to give to produce body lotions for example,

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and if you look at the trunk,

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the trunk of course safeguards water,

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which is often harvested by a thirsty traveler,

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and the leaves are used in traditional medicine

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against infectious disease.

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Now, you can see now why the Africans consider it

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to be the tree of life.

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It's a complete plant,

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and in fact, the sheer size of these trees,

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in fact, are hiding a massive potential,

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not only for the pharma, nutrition,
and the cosmetic industry.

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What I have showed you here

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is only the species from Africa,

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adansonia digitata.

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We have six species yet in Madagascar,

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and we don't know what is the potential of this plant,

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but one thing we know is that the flora

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is considered to be threatened with extinction.

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Let me again take you to Africa again,

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and introduce you to one of my very favorite,

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the resurrection plant.

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Now here you'll find

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that even Jesus has competition.

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(Laughter)

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Now, this plant here has developed

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remarkable tolerance to drought,

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which enables it to withstand

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up to 98 percent dehydration over the period of a year

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without damage,

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and yet it can regenerate itself almost completely

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overnight, over 24 hours, and flower.

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Now, us human beings, you know,

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we're always on the lookout for the elixir of youth.

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We don't want to get old, and rightly so.

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Why should we, especially if you can afford it?

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And this gives you an indication

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of what the plant looks like before.

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Now, if you are an unexperienced gardener,

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the first thing you'll do when you visit the garden

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is to uproot this plant, because, I mean, it's dead,

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but if you water it, this is what you get.

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Absolutely amazing.

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Now, if you look at our aging process,

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the aging process is in fact the loss of water

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from the upper epidermis, resulting in wrinkling

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as we know it, especially women,

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we are so conscious of this,

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and this plant, in fact, is giving the cosmetic chemists

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very important ingredients

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that are actually finding ways

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to slowing down the aging process

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and at the same time reinforce the cells

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against the onslaught of environmental toxins.

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Now, these four examples

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I have just given you

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are just a very tiny reminder

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as to how our health

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and our survival are closely linked

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to the health and the resilience

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of our ecosystem,

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and why we should be very careful

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about preserving biodiversity.

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Every time a forest is cut down,

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every time a marsh is filled in,

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it is a potential lab that goes with it,

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and which we will never, ever recover.

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And I know what I'm talking about

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coming from Mauritius and missing the dodo.

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Let me finish with just one last example.

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You know conservation issues are normally guided

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towards rare, endemic plants,

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but what we call exotic plants,

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that is the ones which grow in many
different habitats across the world,

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they also need to be considered.

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You know why? Because the environment plays

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a very important role

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on modifying the composition of that plant.

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So let's take a look at this plant here,

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centella asiatica. It's a weed.

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We call it a weed.

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Now, centella asiatica grows across the world

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in many different habitats, in Africa, in Asia,

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and this plant has been instrumental

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in providing a solution to that dreadful disease

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called leprosy in Madagascar in the 1940s.

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Now, while centella grows across the world,

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in Africa, in Asia, the best quality centella

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comes from Madagascar,

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because that centella contains
the three vital ingredients

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which are sought after by the pharma

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and the cosmetic companies.

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And the cosmetic companies is already using it

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to make regenerating cream.

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Now, there is an ancient saying

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that for every disease known to mankind,

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there is a plant to cure it.

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Now, you may not believe in ancient sayings.

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You may think they're obsolete

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now that our science and technology are so powerful.

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So, I mean, you may look on centella as being

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an insignificant, humble weed,

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which if destroyed won't be missed.

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But you know, there is no such thing as a weed.

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It's a plant.

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It's a living biological lab

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that may well have answers

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to the question that we may have

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but we have to ensure

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that it has the right to live.

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Thank you.

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(Applause)