Dr Paul SMITH

Secretary General, Botanic Gardens Conservation International

Dr Paul Smith is the Secretary General of Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI). BGCI is the largest plant conservation network in the world, comprising 650 member institutions in 100 countries. Paul joined BGCI as Secretary General in March 2015. Prior to this, Paul was Head of the Royal Botanic Garden, Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank (MSB) for nine years (2005-2014) Paul trained as a plant ecologist, and is a specialist in the plants and vegetation of southern Africa. He is the author of two field guides to the flora of south-central Africa and the Vegetation Atlas of Madagascar. He is a Trustee of the National Botanic Garden of Wales, Chairman of England’s Arboreta Advisory Committee and is the recipient of the New England Wildflower Society’s Medal for Services to International Plant Conservation and the David Fairchild Medal for Plant Exploration.