Paul Stamets (one of worlds most well-known mycologists) gives a lecture discussing 6 ways mushrooms can save the world. Far too many people look at fungi as a source of food, but they are much more than that. (Shrooooms!)
The focus of Stamets’ research is the Northwest’s native fungal genome, mycelium, but along the way he has filed 22 patents for mushroom-related technologies, including pesticidal fungi that trick insects into eating them, and mushrooms that can break down the neurotoxins used in nerve gas.
There are cosmic implications as well. Stamets believes we could terraform other worlds in our galaxy by sowing a mix of fungal spores and other seeds to create an ecological footprint on a new planet.