The 11th International Congress on Education in Botanic Gardens took place on 9th – 13th June 2025 in Seoul, South Korea, hosted by the Korea National Arboretum. The theme of the Congress was “Education for change: Botanic Gardens’ role in addressing global challenges” with 1,736 delegates from 53 countries and 244 organisations participating – the largest BGCI Congress to date!

Congress themes

1. Enhancing Health and Wellbeing: Value of Botanic Gardens

• 1-1. Exploring the connection between exposure to nature in botanic gardens, ecological awareness, and its positive impact on mental health.
• 1-2. Developing educational programs that promote mindfulness, stress reduction, and emotional wellbeing through interaction with nature in botanic gardens.
• 1-3. Recognizing and understanding ecoanxiety as a response to environmental challenges.
• 1-4. Examining the role of therapeutic horticulture programs in botanic gardens for mental health.

2. Breaking Down Silos: Building Interdisciplinary Partnerships

• 2-1. Showcasing successful examples of interdisciplinary initiatives that integrate botany, climate science, and conservation education.
• 2-2. Discussing the benefits and challenges of adopting a more holistic approach, interconnected approach to teaching in botanic gardens to address complex issues like biodiversity loss and other climate challenges.
• 2-3. Creating partnerships between large botanic gardens and smaller local gardens to share resources, expertise, and best practices: ‘Jardines Hermanos’.
• 2-4. Setting up collaborative networks for enhancing educational programming and addressing common conservation challenges.
• 2-5. Sharing benefits of using behaviour change approaches and behaviour-centred design frameworks to support positive action collaboratively.

3. Harnessing the Power of Technology: Learning and Engagement for All

• 3-1. Showcasing interactive educational tools within botanic gardens to enhance engagement and learning about climate challenges.
• 3-2. Providing educators with adaptable teaching strategies to address evolving challenges in biodiversity and climate, fostering resilience and flexibility in their approaches.
• 3-3. Incorporating gamification elements to the learning programmes.

4. Empowering Youth Voices: Youth as Key Stakeholders in Climate Action

• 4-1. Exploring effective communication strategies to engage and inspire youth in climate science and conservation: youth as change-makers.
• 4-2. Fostering collaboration between youth, scientists, and educators to co-create climate research projects and drive meaningful action.
• 4-3. Youth-led citizen science: Providing training and resources for youth to conduct climate-related research and contribute valuable data to scientific understanding.
• 4-4. Empowering youth through volunteering: Creating opportunities for youth to actively participate in botanic garden initiatives through structured volunteering programs.

5. Leaving No One Behind: Promoting Equity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement in Botanic Gardens

• 5-1. Identifying and addressing socio-economic, cultural, and physical barriers that prevent marginalized communities from accessing and engaging with botanic gardens and educational programs.
• 5-2. Engaging local communities in the co-creation of educational programs aimed at fostering awareness about conservation initiatives in botanic gardens.
• 5-3. Incorporating indigenous perspectives, knowledge systems, and traditional ecological knowledge into botanical education and conservation efforts.
• 5-4. Supporting efforts to safeguard and revitalize traditional languages, stories, songs, and ceremonies that are closely tied to botanical knowledge and practices.
• 5-5. Integrating cultural heritage preservation into botanical education and interpretation programs within botanic gardens to foster appreciation for the interconnectedness of cultural and biological diversity.
• 5-6. Examining how biocultural diversity contributes to the resilience and adaptive capacity of communities in the face of environmental change and socio-economic challenges.

Social events

During the congress there were a range of social events that delegates were treated to. This included a Congress dinner with a performance by the Saengdonggam-Crew. And a post-tour workshop to the DMZ which included a special concert at the War Garden.

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