A growing library of civilization carved deep into an arctic mountain | Adriana Craciun | TEDxBoston

Description

The math doesn't math: globally, eight billion people depend on just nine crops for two-thirds of their diet. Historically, humans ate 50,000 different plants. Inside an Arctic mountain near the North Pole, the Svalbard Global Seed Vault holds the genetic backup for a food system that has become dangerously narrow and now even more fragile in the face of climate instability. But the seeds are only half the story. This is a place where North Korean assets rest alongside those from South Korea, where Ukraine and Russia share shelf space. Peruvian farmers entrusted Svalbard with their sacred potatoes, plants treated as kin. It is a precious shared endeavor that supersedes global conflict and human lifespan. What can the project teach us about inspiring trust in science and the power of international cooperation at a moment when both are under attack? Adriana Craciun is a Professor of English at Boston University and one of the few outside researchers granted access to the Global Seed Vault inside the Arctic mountain at Svalbard. Her forthcoming book on the Seed Vault examines it as what she calls a biocultural institution, one that succeeds not just because of its technology but because of its power to connect people emotionally and culturally to the seeds inside. She has spent her career at the intersection of literature, science, and exploration, with previous books on polar exploration, maritime history, and the cultures of natural history. She is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and has held fellowships at the Huntington Library and the National Humanities Center. Her forthcoming book, Arctic Enlightenment: The Time of Plants in the Global Seed Vault, is a study of botanical vitality, temporality, and collecting from the Enlightenment to the present. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx