Why medicinal plants matter on World Wildlife Day

This article is published in association with United Nations.

Medicinal plants and their varied uses span from ancient medicine to modern cosmetics and pharmaceuticals amid a surging demand for more.

Ahead of World Wildlife Day, marked annually on 3 March, we’re delving into why medicinal plants matter.

Plants are critical for ecosystems to economies, said Danna J. Leaman, the outgoing co-chair of the Medicinal Plant Specialist Group of the Species Survival Commission at the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

“In the last 15 years, the spotlight has started to shift to a much broader range of organisms on which not only human health and livelihoods depend, but on which the entire system of biological diversity relies,” Ms. Leaman told UN News.

This year’s focus on medicinal and aromatic plants, she added, reflects a growing recognition of the critical role plants play in both ecosystems and economies, said Ms. Leaman, who is also a conservation biologist and ethno-botanist. 

What’s a medicinal plant?

There is no single definition of a medicinal plant, yet communities around the world have used various species in traditional medicine since the dawn of time.

However, their use is not limited to ancient practices, but also a source of modern pharmaceuticals, food, perfumes, cosmetics and household cleaners.

With the growing interest in natural products in many countries, conversations among proper use and conservation have become even more important.

Conservation conversation

For decades, wildlife conservation efforts focused primarily on animals, but that perspective has gradually expanded, Ms. Leaman explained.

“It is quite remarkable to consider how many communities – and not only rural harvesters or traditional users, but also the pharmaceutical industry – depend on medicines that have been derived in some way from plants,” she said.

The World Wildlife Day theme also highlights an important shift in global conservation priorities under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), the international agreement regulating wildlife trade. 

“In many ways, this is a declaration that we’re not just about animals,” Ms. Leaman said. “CITES itself is recognising that many of the species involved in international trade are plants.”

30,000 plants: Uses and risks

Experts from the Medicinal Plant Specialist Group and the Royal Botanic Gardens in London have compiled global databases documenting species and their uses.

Around 30,000 plant species are widely recognised as medicinal or aromatic plants based on published evidence and trade data.

Like biodiversity more broadly, medicinal and aromatic plants face growing pressure, Ms. Leaman said. Recent assessments of European medicinal plants show threats from agricultural expansion, land-use change and unsustainable harvesting of wild plant populations.

Climate change is also becoming an increasingly serious risk, particularly for species growing in vulnerable habitats such as wetlands and mountain ecosystems.

© Unsplash/Kian Zhang

The ingredients for a traditional Chinese medicinal remedy.

Ayurvedic plant under threat

One plant illustrates both the importance and vulnerability of medicinal species: nardostachys jatamansi, sometimes calles spikenard, a Himalayan herb long valued in traditional medicine systems, including Ayurveda.

Growing in high-altitude regions of Nepal, India and China, its aromatic roots are harvested for use in medicinal preparations and essential oils. The root is the valuable part, so harvesting usually kills the plant, making careful management essential to prevent population decline.

Considered critically endangered on IUCN’s “Red List” of threatened species, nardostachys jatamansi has been the focus of efforts to ensure sustainable harvesting, particularly in Nepal, where trade restrictions now protect wild plants. While such measures aim to conserve the species, they can also affect rural livelihoods that depend on medicinal plant harvesting.

To address that, Ms. Leaman said demonstrating sustainable harvesting practices could help balance conservation with economic needs.

“If harvest and trade can be shown to be sustainable,” she explained, “it would enable local economies to benefit while also strengthening incentives to conserve the habitats where these species grow.”

What can consumers and companies do?

Global interest in and demand for medicinal and aromatic plants is growing rapidly.

While many communities have long relied on natural products, demand has surged in recent years in markets where consumers are increasingly seeking plant-based remedies, supplements and cosmetics.

“It’s important that people be attentive to where these products are coming from,” Ms. Leaman said, offering a few tips:

• Consumers are encouraged to look beyond marketing claims and seek evidence that products are sustainably and ethically sourced.
• Independent tools are now available to help, including an online platform called WildCheck, developed by the wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC, the IUCN’s specialist group and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), to helps companies and consumers assess whether plant ingredients are harvested sustainably, environmental impacts are managed responsibly and communities involved in harvesting are treated fairly.
• Certification schemes such as the FairWild Standard, developed with input from conservation specialists, aim to ensure that sourcing practices meet environmental, social and business responsibility criteria, from harvest to final sale.