Safeguarding Seeds for Future Generations

Safeguarding Seeds for Future Generations. . , Svalbard Global Seed Vault is the largest safety backup of the world's crop diversity , Welcome to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault , We invite you to enjoy the setting of the Seed Vault complex and its magnificent panorama. These illustrated signs explain the story of the Seed Vault, its goals, its accomplishments and the role it plays in the future of agriculture. , From this spot, straight ahead is the Seed Vault's entrance - the portal building - and to the left, its maintenance building for handling seed deposits. The Seed Vault only opens its doors when seed deposits are received from genebanks. , From the portal building, a tunnel leads 130 meters/142 yards into the mountain, to the three 300 m rooms where the seed deposits are stored. The temperature in the Seed Vault is artificially cooled to a constant -18°C (-0.4°F). , Norway established the Seed Vault in 2008 and will continue to secure its funding as a service to the global community. , As of 2020, the Seed Vault had stored more than 1 million seed samples representing more than 5000 species of crops from around the world. This includes more than 150 000 varieties of rice and 200 000 of wheat - two of our most important staple crops. Looking to the future, the Seed Vault has a capacity of 4.5 million samples, enough space to safeguard seeds for all crops of importance to humanity. , The iconic entrance to the Seed Vault is beneath the magnificent "Perpetual Repercussion" artwork created by Norwegian artist Dyveke Sanne to represent and honor the quality of Arctic light. Its reflective stainless steel, mirrors and prisms cut into triangular segments of various sizes are designed to reflect the midnight sun in the summer months, while the overlaid network of fibre-optic cables reflects white and turquoise light in the mirrors during the polar nights.