
Frontiers in Science Lead Article
Published on 04 Sep 2025
The Earth BioGenome Project Phase II: illuminating the eukaryotic tree of life
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Frontiers in Science Lead Article
Published on 04 Sep 2025
Experts delved into The Earth BioGenome Phase II at a virtual Frontiers Forum Deep Dive session on 18 September 2025. Video available soon.
With plans for 25 international hubs, the Earth BioGenome Project is poised to increase global genomics capacity and deliver high-quality reference genomes, argues Dr Paul Flicek, The Jackson Laboratory, USA and University of Cambridge, UK.
Like the Human Genome Project before it, the Earth BioGenome Project must evolve beyond sequencing toward pangenomics, phenotyping, and training future scientists, urges Prof Gane Ka-Shu Wong, University of Alberta, Canada and BGI-Research, China.
The Earth BioGenome Project is scientifically viable and globally coordinated—but success now hinges on strategic policy leadership, sustained funding, and unrestricted data access, asserts Prof Richard A. Gibbs, Baylor College of Medicine, USA.
The ongoing success of Phase I of the Earth Biogenome Project (EBP) demonstrates the feasibility of producing reference-quality genomes at scale, enabling the project to achieve its overarching goal: to sequence 1.67 million eukaryotic species in 10 years.
Using knowledge from Phase I projects, we propose a revised strategy for Phase II: collecting specimens for 300,000 species and sequencing 150,000 species, representing at least half of the eukaryotic genera, in 4 years.
Technical advances in DNA sequencing, genome assembly, and genome annotation have reduced costs and increased throughput to the point that we envisage globally distributed production of reference-quality genomes for most eukaryotic species for a total cost of about US$3.9 billion—US$800 million less than initially envisioned.
Key challenges remain, including enhancing global coordination and building communities of users and interested parties; creating an inclusive, global biodiversity genomics workforce; developing effective access and benefit-sharing methodologies; facilitating collection at scale of vouchered specimens; sequencing reference genomes from single-celled and very small organisms; enhancing functional annotation; and building large-scale toolkits for comparative genomics.
Technological and operational innovations, such as a “sequencing lab in a box,” have the potential to radically transform the global capacity for biodiversity genome sequencing, facilitating national benefit-sharing agreements and the realization of societal impacts on Indigenous peoples and local communities.
We propose the establishment of a US$0.5 billion Foundational Impact Project fund to support the immediate use of the genome sequences in conservation, agriculture, biodiversity monitoring, biotechnology, and basic sciences, focused on supporting initiatives in the Global South.
A summary of the lead article in a Q&A format, with infographics and a video.
An article on next-generation sequencing written for—and peer reviewed by—kids aged 8-15 years.
From the mighty blue whale to the humble baker’s yeast, scientists have barely begun to understand the vast genetic diversity among lifeforms. Of the 1.67m known species of animal, plant, fungi and protists, just 1% have been genetically sequenced.
A global collaboration that includes experts at the Wellcome Sanger Institute has mapped out the second phase of its ambitious plan to sequence all 1.67 million known species on Earth by 2035.
A global strategy published today aims to greatly accelerate the Earth BioGenome Project (EBP) – an ambitious global effort to better protect biodiversity by assembling ‘reference genomes’ for all known plants, animals, and other eukaryotic species.
As ambitious for biology as Apollo was for space: the Earth BioGenome Project seeks to map 1.67 million species’ genomes to safeguard life.
Launched in 2020, initiative seeks to build vast 'digital bank of life' to protect biodiversity amid accelerating species loss.
The genome of life is vanishing faster than we can understand it. Species are going extinct, ecosystems are breaking down, and climate change is making everything more unstable.
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