The symposium presents leading plant science researchers working on topics that relate to the five critical global issues identified by the Global Plant Council, namely world hunger, human health, global climate change, energy and biomaterials, and sustainability and environmental protection. The symposium brings to the fore how fundamental discoveries and sophisticated research in the plant sciences, apart from advancing the field, can and do provide new technologies, novel strategies, and practical solutions or mitigations to some of the major global challenges that face future generations. The speakers will highlight how fundamental cutting-edge plant research has not only advanced the field, but has affected the major problems that surround sustainability and food security, mitigated the affects of global climate change, affected the growing need for renewable energy, and contributed to the improvement of human health and wellbeing in a changing society. By bringing the plant science community together, and with other disciplines, to bring perspective and innovation to global issues, the Global Plant Council hopes to expand the capability of the scientific community to bear fundamental scientific understanding to create a global landscape on which practical applications may flourish.