Preserves

In an effort to preserve medicinal plant species of the Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR or Laos), a Medicinal Plant Preserve was established in Bolikhamxay Province in 2004 through the Institute of Traditional Medicine (ITM)-University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) International Cooperative Biodiversity Groups (ICBG) Project collaboration, which ran from 1998 to 2008. Today, many other Medicinal Plant Preserves (MPPs) and Medicinal Biodiversity Preserves (MBPs) have been established throughout the country, protecting many medicinal plant species from habitat loss and over-harvesting, thus safeguarding the continued use of these plants for the present and future generations. The ITM is the coordinator of these preserves, along with the cooperation of the provincial governments and communities surrounding the preserves.