Some start-ups and nonprofits have promising solutions for helping fungi help us. Funga, a company in Austin, Texas, identifies native fungi that can assist trees in storing more carbon. SPUN, a scientific research organization, is mapping the world’s fungi to identify regional hot spots in need of conservation. At least 350 species are already at risk of going extinct, though the real figure is likely much higher.For Simmons at Purdue’s Herbaria, winning the race against the biodiversity clock is critical—for humanity and fungi alike. “We’re finding things that are beneficial to humanity in some way, whether it be the production of compounds like biofuels or compounds that are understood to have medicinal purposes.”What’s kept protected, he adds, may one day solve the next problem we might create.This story appears in the April 2024 issue of National Geographic magazine.
This deadly fungus is hitchhiking its way across the world
