Like species diversity, genetic diversity has been declining rapidly over the last century. The progressive loss of habitats is having a negative impact on genetic diversity, which is the key to species’ ability to adapt.
By signing the Convention on Biological Diversity, Switzerland committed itself to assessing, monitoring, and halting the erosion of genetic diversity.
In practice, however, genetic diversity is still insufficiently integrated into biodiversity monitoring and protection strategies. For example, there is still no systematic collection of data to facilitate conservation. A project for a national database on intraspecific genetic diversity will fill this gap in Switzerland. Switzerland is the first country in the world to have such a database.