State of the World's Plants and Fungi

We publish reports that give our assessment of the current knowledge on the world's plants and fungi.

Tree trunks surrounded by raging orange flames

Kew’s State of the World’s Plants and Fungi project provides assessments of our current knowledge of the diversity of plants and fungi on Earth, the global threats that they face, and the policies to safeguard them.

Produced in conjunction with an international scientific symposium, Kew’s State of the World’s Plants and Fungi sets an important international standard from which we can annually track trends in the global status of plant and fungal diversity.

Since 2016, we have published four reports which you can read below.

State of the World's Plants and Fungi 2023

Save the dates! Our next report, titled 'Tackling the Nature Emergency: Evidence, gaps and priorities' is due to be published in October 2023, with a symposium on the key themes to be held from 11-13 October.

Find out more about this year's symposium, more details coming soon!

State of the World's Plants and Fungi 2020

Our fourth report in the State of the World’s series combines plants and fungi for the first time.

It is also the first report that is accompanied by a full volume of expert-reviewed scientific publications in the New Phytologist Foundation’s Open Access journal Plant, People, Planet

Drawing upon the expertise of 210 contributors in 97 institutions across 42 countries, the report is an unparalleled collaborative effort which takes an in-depth look at how we can protect and sustainably use the world’s plants and fungi for the benefit of people and the planet.

Now, more than ever before, we need to explore the solutions that plants and fungi could provide to the global challenges we face.

 

State of the World’s Plants and Fungi reports

  • Tree trunks surrounded by raging orange flames

    State of the World's Plants and Fungi 2020

    The fourth report in the State of the World's series which combines both plants and fungi.

  • Shaggy parasol (Chlorophyllum rhacodes). Mushroom on woodland floor with a shaggy cap.

    State of the World's Fungi 2018

    Kew released the first ever State of the World's Fungi report revealing how important fungi are to all life on Earth.

  • State of the World's Plants 2017

    State of the World's Plants 2017

    This is the second annual report in which we have scrutinised databases, published literature, policy documents, reports and satellite imagery to provide a synthesis of current knowledge on the world’s plants.

  • State of the World's Plants 2016

    State of the World's Plants 2016

    The original State of the World’s Plants report provided, for the first time, a baseline assessment of our knowledge on the diversity of plants on earth, the global threats these plants face, and the policies dealing with them.

Sponsors

The staff and trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew would like to thank the Sfumato Foundation for generously funding the State of the World’s Plants and Fungi project.