Earth BioGenome Project
The Earth BioGenome Project (EBP) is an initiative that aims to sequence and catalog the genomes of all of Earth's currently described eukaryotic species over a period of ten years. The initiative would produce an open DNA database of biological information that provides a platform for scientific research and supports environmental and conservation initiatives. A scientific paper presenting the vision for the project was published in PNAS in April 2018, and the project officially launched November 1, 2018. The initiative was inspired by Human Genome Project, and emerged during November 2015 meeting between Harris Lewin (UCD), Gene E. Robinson (IGB) and W. John Kress (Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History). In February 2017, at major conference on genomics and biodiversity organized by the Smithsonian Institution and BGI in Washington, D.C. was supported project's 10-year plan and organizational structure. Summary The project is projected to cost US$4.7 billion. It includes already ongoing projects such as i5K (insects), B10K (birds), 10KP (plants), and the Darwin Tree of Life, which aim to sequence the estimated 66,000 eukaryotic species in the United Kingdom. The project is aiming to sequence and annotate the roughly 1.5 million known eukaryotic species in three phases, with first