The Pan-Himalayan region, with its vast climate range, is home to 20,000 higher plant species. They account for one-fifteenth of the world's total. However, in what is one of the most geologically unstable regions on the planet, their habitat is under threat.

Since 2011, Prof. Hong Deyuan and his colleague Wang Qian from the Chinese Academy of Sciences have been leading a series of international scientific expeditions to the Pan-Himalayan region.