Overview

Microbial diversity is globally threatened by urbanization and environmental change proceeding at an unprecedented pace. In analogy to the Svalbard Gobal Seed Vault, the Microbiota Vault initiative sets out to preserve the biodiversity of human-associated microbiota, while still possible, by constructing an institution for the safe storage and preservation of microbiota samples and collections. The Microbiota Vault will closely interact with local working collections all over the world.