Nature provides us with food, raw materials and medicine. It regulates the climate and provides us with recreational space and entertainment. At the LIB, we deal with many topics that directly affect life in our society: whether it's sustainable agriculture or pandemic prevention, our consumer behaviour or the birds in our garden.
Digital collections as global repositories of knowledge
Scientific collections form the heart of our research museum. In addition to working with the original objects, digital catalogues enable the rapid exchange of collection data.
Unknown biodiversity
We know very little about life on our planet. According to current estimates, there are eight to ten million species of animals, plants and fungi worldwide. Of these, only around ten per cent have been scientifically described to date.
Ecosystem services
Insects constantly provide us with considerable ecosystem services as pollinators, waste exterminators and pest controllers. Scientists estimate that these services provided by pollinators such as wild bees, hoverflies and butterflies amount to 3.8 billion euros in Germany and 577 billion euros worldwide.
Biodiversity as a production factor
Animal husbandry and arable farming on common areas, integration of flower strips and trees in agricultural land, water and soil protection and much more: a diverse agricultural landscape not only helps nature, but also secures our food base and the yields of agricultural businesses.
Research into pandemic prevention
Around the world, countless viruses that can also infect humans lie dormant in animals. With the progressive fragmentation and destruction of natural habitats, biodiversity is shrinking. This increases the risk that more and more people will come into contact with new potential pathogens.