Public Engagement

BGCI's education team support botanic gardens in their public engagement and education efforts through a range of resources, tools and projects

BGCI has an extensive Public Engagement programme that provides a wide range of tools and resources to support and promote the education work of botanic gardens around the world.

Public engagement current projects

Ongoing
Project

Food Forever Global Exhibition

The Food Forever Global Exhibition is a series of interpretation resources that are free for botanic gardens to use to develop their own online or in person exhibition about Food Forever.
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Ongoing
RBGE community gardening
Project

Food Sustainability Challenge

The Food Sustainability Challenge is a UK based project funded by The Rothschild Foundation which aims to explore and support the development of food sustainability interventions taking place in UK botanic gardens.
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Ongoing
Sustainable Development Goals
Project

BGCI Sustainability Challenge

The BGCI Sustainability Challenge aims to work with leading botanic gardens to develop a series of simple, small-scale sustainability challenges, with associated incentives, that aim to empower and bring about behavioural change amongst garden visitors and the broader community.
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Through a recent European project, we worked with botanic gardens to increase their social relevance, helping them to work with their local communities on common issues of social and environmental importance. In our current projects (BigPicnic and LearnToEngage) we are supporting botanic gardens to use participatory approaches (such as co-creation and team-based inquiry) to develop the way in which they work with their local community, and we are developing a series of learning materials to support education staff in their interpretation, science communication and evaluation.

BGCI’s education team produces a biannual journal ‘Roots’, and organises regular training courses and conferences (including BGCI’s International Congresses on Education in Botanic Gardens).

BGCI's Education Journal: Roots

  • Roots

    Public Engagement / Publication, BGCI Journal / English, Spanish
    More details

Public engagement past projects

Completed
Project

BigPicnic

BigPicnic is a three year project that brings together the public, scientists, policy-makers and industry to help tackle the global challenge of food security.
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Completed
Project

INQUIRE

INQUIRE was a European Union funded project which aimed to reinvigorate inquiry-based science education (IBSE) in formal and informal education systems (specifically Learning Outside the Classroom sites) throughout Europe.
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Completed
Project

Communities in Nature

Communities in Nature was a 5 year project that aimed to support botanic gardens to grow their social role.
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Public engagement past projects

Completed
LearnToEngage participants at Science Communication on-site week
Project

LearnToEngage

LearnToEngage is a suite of professional development modules for botanic garden staff and museum educators.
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Additional resources

BGCI’s education team also provides training, resources and support to botanic gardens in education and engagement best practice. Best practice key topics include:

  • Interpretation
  • Working with diverse audiences
  • Science communication
  • Evaluation and research
  • The social role of botanic gardens
  • Participatory approaches
  • Inquiry-based science education

Visit the education best practice pages