To advance plant science and answer the challenges of the future, solid and reliable data is required. The Australian National Botanic Garden has responded this challenge by building an information system that integrates data across institutions such that it managed as a consolidated whole.

Original collections are vouchered, and herbarium material is used to support ongoing identifications, propagation methods and success are tracked through the nursery, seed is banked and seed traits are recorded, seed germination methods and results are managed, gardens stock, and general horticultural practises such as tree management and stocktaking are accommodated. Reporting of rare and threatened taxa is linked directly to the current Australian Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) listing.

Data in the ANBG Living Collections information system is used to undertake day to day management of the collections; provide analysis of the collection composition and history to inform future directions; provide interaction with the public via an interactive spatial application; support national and global initiative's through delivery of open accessible data to aggregators such as botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI), the Australian Seed Virtual Seed Bank (AVSB) and Australian Seed Traits database (AusTraits) who provided targeted data for their constituents to answer conservation and research questions;

Importantly, using this consolidated approach supports the ANBG to make informed decisions on plant diversity and threatened taxa locally within the gardens and to report on the ANBG's contribution to national and global biodiversity conservation targets.