Biotechnologies and sustainable development are now at a crossroad and there is increasing interest in applying such technology in the current efforts for ecological intensification of oil palm cultivation. Living organisms are supported by the genome (DNA) through the action of the transcriptome (RNAs), proteome, metabolome and ionome, the four basic pillars of functional genomics. They represent the sum of all the expressed genes, proteins, metabolites, and elements within an organism. The dynamic response and interaction of these biochemical “omes” defines how a living system functions, and its study, systems biology, is now one of the biggest challenges in life sciences. In oil palm, as in many major crops, functional genomics is still at its beginning, although there are no reasons why oil palm biology should not rapidly benefit from the fast progresses generated by automated and high-throughput technologies. The success of sequencing projects on several palm species has created a widespread interest in exploring the structure and expression patterns of the genome, paving the way for the rapid evolution of various genomics-based approaches. At the same time, agricultural scientists are requested to provide long term solutions for the mitigation and adaption of crop species to climate change. A specific focus has been set on carbon capitation in soils, which will certainly boost research efforts in metagenomics of underground living organisms. The present talk will focus on recent developments in various plant biotechnology areas in which applications for improving sustainability already exist or will be developed in the near future. (Texte intégral)