The final symposium was held on the 25th anniversary of the initiative "Between Europe and the East - Higher education and research in Central Asia and the Caucasus" sponsored by the Volkswagen Foundation. The purpose of the event, which was organized on June 10-12, 2024 at the Herrenhausen Palace in Hannover, Germany, was to discuss the results of the projects implemented in the countries of the region with the support of the Volkswagen Foundation, as well as to share best practices. At the symposium, associate professor Rashad Salimov, dean of the faculty of Natural Sciences of Sumgait State University, delivered a report on "DNA-based evidence for the protection of flowering plants in Azerbaijan", and also gave detailed information about the achievements in molecular phylogenetics, intrageneric classification and biogeography of the genus "Scutellaria" conducted by him. It should be noted that, with the support of the Volkswagen Foundation, scientific research was carried out, especially on molecular phylogenetics and systematics, and bioinformatics, within the framework of projects jointly implemented by young specialists of Azerbaijan with the Berlin Botanical Garden and Botanical Museum (BGBM, Freie Universität, Germany) with the support of the Volkswagen Foundation.