Help Build the Australian Institute of Pharmacognosy
The Australian Institute of Pharmacognosy is an independent and fledgling research institute. We study plant medicines with the chemistry and evidence standards a university pharmacology department would use, and every donated instrument goes straight onto the bench and back into daily use.
Healers have used plants as medicine for thousands of years, from the Amazon to the Australian outback. Most of that pharmacology has never been checked properly. We document those plants and test the claims made about them.
What We’ve Accomplished
Despite our young status, the Institute has chartered a researcher-run laboratory in Cardwell, equipped largely through donations from schools and other organisations. It has also catalogued a research library of 903 volumes, holds official herbal monographs published by the World Health Organization, the European Medicines Agency and overseas pharmacopoeias covering 664 plant species, and has begun documenting plants through field surveys and its own evidence-graded monograph series.
Now accepting equipment donations
Your old lab gear deserves a second life
Upgrading, closing or clearing out a lab? We will collect your surplus equipment free of charge and put it straight back to work in plant medicine research.
Universities, hospitals, schools and businesses often pay to have working equipment hauled away. We would much rather give it a second life. Older models, superseded instruments and gear needing minor repair are all welcome.
Offer equipmentWhat we are looking for
Tap a category to see what we can use.
Analytical instrumentation
Our highest priority
Instruments are most useful with their control PC, software, licences and manuals.
Chromatography
Mass spectrometry
Spectroscopy
Physical testing
Weighing
Extraction and sample preparation
From rotavaps to supercritical CO2
Microscopy, botany and biology
Scopes, presses, chambers and cabinets
Laboratory infrastructure and safety
Fume cupboards, freezers, storage
Laboratory glassware
Any quantity, mixed boxes and partial sets
Laboratory consumables
Unopened or surplus stock, including recently expired items
Reagents and reference standards
Sealed or clearly labelled, ideally with SDS
We accept sealed or clearly labelled reagents in their original containers, ideally with Safety Data Sheets. We cannot accept unlabelled containers or substances that need a permit we do not hold.
How donating works
- Send us a list or a few photos of what you have.
- We confirm what we can use and arrange a collection time.
- We handle disconnection, packing and transport at no cost to you.
- You receive a written acknowledgement of your donation.
Please decontaminate equipment before collection, and include a decontamination certificate where your institution issues one.
Have something for us?
Send a list or a few photos through our contact form, or email our contact form. We reply to every offer.
Offer equipmentOur Vision
As an independent, not-for-profit research institute based in Australia, we’re working to build a centre for pharmacognosy—the scientific study of medicines derived from natural sources. Our work connects traditional botanical knowledge from cultures worldwide and contemporary medical science.
The Challenge We Face
To expand our research, we need:
- A permanent research facility to house our growing team and equipment
- Additional scientific talent to accelerate our research initiatives
- Advanced analytical equipment to identify and characterise novel compounds
Unexplored chemistry
The pharmaceutical potential of the world’s biodiversity remains largely unexplored. With your support, we can:
- Help preserve traditional botanical knowledge, with respect for its custodians
- Build Australia’s capacity in natural product research
Your Support Makes the Difference
Every instrument you pass on moves us closer to:
- Secure our first dedicated research facility
- Acquire essential analytical equipment
- Fund talented researchers passionate about botanical medicine
Join Our Community
By supporting the Australian Institute of Pharmacognosy, you become part of a growing community dedicated to the scientific study of medicinal plants. We will regularly share our work through:
- Public workshops and educational programs
- our blog (a new post is planned each week) and monograph series
- research publications as they are ready
- collaborative projects as partnerships develop
- Community engagement initiatives
- our website (australian-pharmacognosy.org)
Help us write the next chapter in pharmacognosy research.
The Australian Institute of Pharmacognosy is a not-for-profit research organisation dedicated to advancing public knowledge of botanical medicines from around the world and their applications in modern healthcare.
Our status. The Australian Institute of Pharmacognosy is an unincorporated not-for-profit association (ABN 80 473 856 173). It is not yet registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) and is not a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR). Donations and other payments to the Institute are not tax-deductible. The Institute is working towards incorporation, charity registration and, after that, an application to the Australian Taxation Office for DGR endorsement. It holds none of these yet, and the decisions rest with the regulators.
How to support us. We are currently accepting equipment donations. See what we are looking for above, then send us a list or a few photos through our contact form or at our contact form. Read more: Legal Status and Fundraising.