Discovering the institute in Saint Petersburg was a mind-changing revelation. How can we continue to ignore such a wealth of knowledge and the vital role played by this institute and others like it throughout the world? How can we neglect the fact that future world food supplies will depend on our ability to preserve the genetic memory of plants? How is it possible that a man of Vavilov's calibre and his contribution to understanding biodiversity have been forgotten? In a spirit of open-mindedness, he not only sought knowledge in the most distant regions and countries, but also encouraged the multiplication of seed banks and exchanges between concerned scientists everywhere. Such questions were more than sufficient to justify the publication of this book, as a homage to Nikolai Vavilov and all those who follow his agronomical vision and universalist views. They are the ones who, day after day, be it in laboratories or in the fields, keep his memory alive / Mario Del Curto"--P. [2].