As the National Botanical Garden of Türkiye, operating under the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, we are interested in joining a transnational consortium under Topic 1 (or Topic 2) as a forest genetics partner, contributing expertise on drought adaptation and the science-based use of climate-adapted forest .
We were partners in the Biodiversa+ BiodivClim project ACORN (2021–2024; partners from Austria, Germany, Greece, Switzerland and Türkiye,https://www.biodiversa.eu/2022/10/26/acorn/), which investigated drought adaptation in Quercus robur, Q. petraea and Q. pubescens across Central Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean, and developed an assisted gene flow concept to inform FRM guidelines.
What we can offer:
• Established field trial site and common-garden facility for climate change studies, available for new experiments and long-term assessment of drought- and heat-related traits
• Sampling capacity across Türkiye, covering a wide range of climatic and ecological gradients; Türkiye's forests are a natural analogue for future climate conditions in Central Europe and a potential source of drought-adapted seed material
• Laboratory facilities for SSR (microsatellite) genotyping and genomic short-read sequencing data analysis
• Extensive experience in seed transfer, seed sourcing and FRM, including assisted gene flow / assisted migration concepts with natioanl permits.
• Policy-related expertise: as a ministry-affiliated institution, experience in translating research results into FRM and seed-transfer guidelines, and in working with forest authorities, nurseries and other stakeholders

We are open to extending our work to other tree species and regions. We can host field activities, sampling campaigns and project meetings (including field visits to our trial sites) for consortium partners. The Turkish participation is funded by TÜBİTAK, which takes part in this call.

The National Botanical Garden of Türkiye is a research institute of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, operating under the General Directorate of Agricultural Research and Policies (TAGEM), and located in Ankara. Its mission is the conservation, research and sustainable use of Türkiye's rich plant diversity, including its forest tree genetic resources.
The institute maintains living plant collections, field trial sites and a common-garden facility for climate change research, together with laboratories for molecular genetic analyses and genomcics. Its research focuses on plant and forest genetics, adaptation to climate change, seed sourcing and conservation of genetic resources.
As a ministry institution, the National Botanical Garden of Türkiye contributes to national policies and guidelines on plant genetic resources and forest reproductive material, and works closely with forest authorities, research institutes, universities and nurseries.