A listserve member posed this very important question to me in a follow-up to my post yesterday about the new film, Numen: The Healing Power of Plants. <div><br></div><div>THE QUESTION: <span style="color:rgb(31,73,125);font-size:15px;font-family:Arial,sans-serif">How is plant conservation addressed in the film?</span></div>
<div><div><br></div><div><span style>THE ANSWER, FROM THE CO-PRODUCER OF THE FILM, Ann Armbrecht: </span></div><div><span style><br></span></div><div><span style>"T</span><span style="color:rgb(34,34,34);font-size:13px;font-family:arial,sans-serif">here is a longer version of the film that focuses on the business of herbs, key questions to ask in purchasing herbal products, and the importance of being aware of where they come from, how they are grown and harvested and that leads into a discussion of United Plant Savers. We have removed that section in this version mostly because the film was just too long. But also because we no longer felt we could do justice to the business of herbal products, which is a huge, complex and extremely mixed industry in a 10 min section of a longer film. We chose to focus more on the relationship with plants, emphasis on growing your own medicine, etc and not the herbal industry/products per se. I know that doesn't really address the question, except that that would be an entirely different film. We are going to add this section from the original film w/business of herbs and the section on UpS as stand alone sections on our website as soon as we can get around to it."</span></div>
<div><br></div><div>I WOULD ADD: </div><div><br></div><div>The Numen website points you toward additional information on sustainability. On the page titled, <span style="background-color:rgb(255,255,255);color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px">the "Business of Herbalism," see the section on Social and Ecological Sustainability with a link to the International Standard for Sustainable Wild Collection of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (</span><font color="#222222" face="arial, sans-serif"><a href="http://www.numenfilm.com/issues-business-of-herbalism.php">http://www.numenfilm.com/issues-business-of-herbalism.php</a>). </font></div>
<div><font color="#222222" face="arial, sans-serif"><br></font></div><div><font color="#222222" face="arial, sans-serif">The ISSC Map was developed by a cadre of excellent medicinal plant experts from across the world, including the IUCN-Medicinal Plant Specialist Group, the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, the World Wildlife Fund Germany and TRAFFIC, and Traditional Medicinals (<a href="http://www.floraweb.de/map-pro/decisionboard.html">http://www.floraweb.de/map-pro/decisionboard.html</a></font><span style="color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:arial,sans-serif">).</span></div>
<div><font color="#222222" face="arial, sans-serif"><br></font></div><div><font color="#222222" face="arial, sans-serif">The ISSC-MAP was adopted by the FairWild Foundation, created in 2008, which certifies that products with the FairWild label are legally and sustainably sourced and fairly traded (<a href="http://www.fairwild.org/">http://www.fairwild.org/</a></font><span style="color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:arial,sans-serif">).</span></div>
<div><span style="color:rgb(34,34,34);font-family:arial,sans-serif;font-size:13px;background-color:rgb(255,255,255)"><br></span></div><div>I hope this helps. Thank you for the question.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div>
<div><div><div>Patricia S. De Angelis, Ph.D.</div><div>Botanist, Division of Scientific Authority-US Fish & Wildlife Service-International Affairs</div>
<div>Chair, Medicinal Plant Working Group-Plant Conservation Alliance</div><div>4401 N. Fairfax Dr., Suite 110</div><div>Arlington, VA 22203</div><div>703-358-1708 x1753</div><div>FAX: 703-358-2276</div><div><br></div><div>
Promoting sustainable use and conservation of our native medicinal plants. </div><div><<a href="http://www.nps.gov/plants/medicinal" target="_blank">www.nps.gov/plants/medicinal</a>></div><div><br></div><div>Follow International Affairs</div>
<div>> on Twitter <a href="http://twitter.com/USFWSInternatl" target="_blank">http://twitter.com/USFWSInternatl</a></div><div>> on Facebook <a href="http://www.facebook.com/USFWS_InternationalAffairs" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/USFWS_InternationalAffairs</a></div>
</div>
<br><br><div class="gmail_quote">On Wed, Jul 10, 2013 at 1:54 PM, De Angelis, Patricia <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:patricia_deangelis@fws.gov" target="_blank">patricia_deangelis@fws.gov</a>></span> wrote:<br><blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">
<p class="MsoNormal">Please see the message below about a gorgeous film that is being released called, Numen: The Healing Power of Plants. It is a welcome arrival for those of us who believe in the power of plants, highlighting several
major concepts that demonstrate the relevance of medicinal plants to our
everyday lives and to our future. It features an array of
our best known and most beloved medicinal plant experts. The producers have indicated that all sales are currently slated to
support the further dissemination of the film so that they may bring the information to
wider audiences. </p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br></p><div><div>Patricia S. De Angelis, Ph.D.</div><div>Botanist, Division of Scientific Authority-US Fish & Wildlife Service-International Affairs</div>
<div>Chair, Medicinal Plant Working Group-Plant Conservation Alliance</div><div>4401 N. Fairfax Dr., Suite 110</div><div>Arlington, VA 22203</div><div>703-358-1708 x1753</div><div>FAX: 703-358-2276</div><div><br></div></div>
</blockquote></div><br></div></div>