Introduction

We seek to pioneer novel experiments to generate Behavioral Evidence for Plant Consciousness (BEPC). Our initiative proposes that plants may be able to exhibit forms of consciousness through trace conditioning—a learning process previously associated with conscious experience in animals. Should this first-of-a-kind study be successful, it will have profound implications, challenging the longstanding assumption that sentience is exclusively linked to brain states. BEPC is not just about scientific discovery; it’s a step towards refashioning societal norms and ethical considerations in our relationship with nature. By extending sentience to plants, BEPC can reshape our ethical relationship with ecologies, promoting a biocentric worldview. In accomplishing this, we foresee the creation of a research paradigm that will foster lasting interdisciplinary collaborations between research communities in non-neuronal cognition, philosophy, ethics and psychology.

UMU provides all the necessary resources. MINT Lab has several growth facilities that include controlled environment rooms (temperature, relative humidity, photoperiod and CO₂), climatic chambers with illumination, and technological greenhouses. MINT Lab also has dedicated facilities for time-lapse recording.