Plants matter. A lot. Globally, they have integral roles in a variety of processes, from feeding the planet, to being the source of medicines for everything from malaria to cancer. Plants derive their energy from the sun’s light in a process called photosynthesis, one of the most fundamental processes on the planet.

Photosynthesis uses the sunlight hitting leaves to provide the energy required to fix carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This CO₂ is incorporated into carbon-based sugars that generate new plant biomass. Photosynthesis produces oxygen as a by-product, which is released by the plants into the atmosphere.

So why bother learning about it?

In the face of climate change, which will result in not only increased mean temperatures but also increased climactic variability, knowledge of photosynthesis will allow scientists to establish how plant productivity will change. Rainfall, temperature and wind speed will all alter in the face of global climate change, and the ability to predict their effects on photosynthesis is important to many fields, not least agriculture, allowing farmers to be better informed about how their crops will fare.

According to Professor Howard Griffiths of the Cambridge Department of Plant Sciences, “plant productivity is the basis of life on Earth. For the next generation, plants will become the focus of key global issues: how to feed an additional two to three billion mouths, drive forward an economy currently trading on past sunlight, and maintain biodiversity in the face of climate change.”

Knowledge of photosynthesis also informs attempts to increase agricultural efficiency. The C4 rice project is looking to further knowledge about a specialised form of photosynthesis found in species like wheat, and engineer it into rice. This particular type of photosynthesis (C4) is more efficient at high temperatures, and so the hope is that it could result in increased crop yields in the face of rising temperatures.

Professor Griffiths sums the situation perfectly: "We need a better understanding of plants to feed a burgeoning population and offer a sustainable future."

Ignore green life at your peril.