Global Botanic Garden Congress
Introduction
BGCI’s Global Botanic Garden Congress is the only global congress dedicated to botanic gardens and is a key event in the calendar for botanic garden leaders and staff. It is an opportunity for the botanic garden community to come together and share information and experiences. Held every three or four years the Congress includes internationally renown plenary speakers and sessions covering topics relevant to botanic gardens such as policy, education, governance, conservation and research.
The 8th Global Botanic Gardens Congress “Botanic Gardens: People and Plants for a Sustainable Future” will be taking place in Singapore, 6 – 9 August 2024; with Congress tours and other activities around those dates.
You can learn more about the upcoming congress, including important dates, here and you can learn about sponsorship opportunities, here.
Want to come but funding is a challenge? We have information about bursaries available now. You can learn more here.
As part of the GSCC, BGCI, Kew’s Millennium Seed Bank and the IUCN Seed Conservation Specialist Group will be announcing the winners of seed conservation awards at the 8th Global Botanic Garden Congress, you can learn more about the awards and make your nomination, here.
Past Congresses
- 7th Global Botanic Gardens Congress – Melbourne, Australia, 2022
- 6th Global Botanic Gardens Congress – Geneva, Switzerland, 2017
- 5th Global Botanic Gardens Congress – Dunedin, New Zealand, 2013
- 4th Global Botanic Gardens Congress – Dublin, Ireland, 2010
- 3rd Global Botanic Gardens Congress – Wuhan, China, 2007
- 2nd World Botanic Gardens Congress – Barcelona, Spain, 2004
- 1st World Botanic Gardens Congress – North Carolina, USA, 2000
7th Global Botanic Gardens Congress
BGCI’s highly anticipated 7th Global Botanic Gardens Congress (7GBGC) has now successfully concluded. Held from 25-29 September and hosted by the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria in Melbourne, Australia, the Congress attracted 500 delegates from 36 countries.
Having been delayed for 18 months due to Covid and for the first time incorporating a special Education and Engagement Day, the Congress proved to be a very special event, bringing together botanic garden representatives from every continent (except Antarctica) to share experiences, renew friendships and develop new partnerships.
The Congress opened with the Education and Engagement Day which provided an opportunity for over 80 botanic garden educators from around the world to assemble in the beautiful setting of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Victoria for a day of practical workshops and hands-on activities, which were much appreciated by all.
In the evening Congress participants were welcomed to Melbourne by the Lord Mayor, Sally Capp and treated to a stunning Aboriginal dance performance by the Djirri Djirri Dancers.
The official opening of the Congress was held the following morning, with a Welcome to Country and video addresses from The Hon Lily D’Ambrosio, Minister for Environment & Climate Change and Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, the Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
The stage was set for the Congress by the opening plenary from Prof. Michelle Leishman of Macquarie University with a talk entitled ‘Global Change : Bringing plants back from the brink’. The day continued with a wide range of talks, symposia and workshops, including a series of special tree themed symposia sponsored by the Morton Arboretum.
The next two days passed in a flash, with the biggest dilemma being deciding which sessions to attend out of the many on offer. Key themes of the Congress covered plant conservation, climate change, greener cities, living in a post-Covid world, global conversations and impactful engagement and education. Conservation horticulture received a special focus with a well-attended workshop discussing how to mainstream, recognise and reward specialist conservation horticulture and a number of new tools to support the work of botanic gardens were launched (see links in the Congress Conclusions document).
The Congress concluded with a panel discussion hosted by the well-known Australian landscape architect and TV presenter Costa Georgiadis where a number of participants reflected on their impressions and shared their personal high-points of the Congress.
Key issues emerging during the Congress were captured in a set of concluding slides – available here, and after a whirlwind four days, the Congress was closed by Dr Tim Entwisle, Director and Chief Executive of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria.
The final act of the Congress was the announcement that Singapore Botanic Gardens will be the host of the 8th Global Botanic Gardens Congress to be held in 2024.
News on the Global Botanic Garden Congress
Global Congress Resources
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BGCI Global Congress Proceedings
Services for Botanic Gardens / Publication / English
