Happy New Year from Plant Talk

A very warm welcome to 2009. We hope everyone has a successful year protecting plants and the environment.

If the end of 2008 was sobering, the start of 2009 looks even tougher. The global recession is hammering away at our economies and forcing us to take a long hard look at the way we do business. We've finally realised that perpetual economic growth is just a figment of the imagination; we cannot keep printing money to answer the problems.

Perhaps, then, 2009 will be a year of protectionism: a chance to look after what we have and what we've created. With a burgeoning population it's imperative we safeguard resources now.

Plant Talk readers are at the frontline of many of these battles. You are the witnesses and the hope.