Catalysts for change: reimagining museum gardens as spaces for nature, people and science

Addressing the planetary emergency of biodiversity loss requires action at all levels, from governments and corporations to communities and individuals. A key step in driving positive action is the creation of science-informed advocates for the planet – people who speak up on behalf of nature and take action to protect it. In this talk I explore the role that Museum gardens can play as places of inspiration, learning and science. I focus on the newly re-opened Natural History Museum gardens at South Kensington, London: a five-acre space that has been comprehensively redesigned into a hub for nature discovery, research and education. I will introduce the garden designs and how we are using the space, with a particular focus on the roles that data and technology are playing as tools for research and engagement.

About the speaker:

I have a lifelong fascination in the UK’s natural world and the interplay between people and nature. After a PhD studying the evolution of England’s landscape since the last ice age, I became a conservation ecologist at Kew Gardens. I joined the Natural History Museum in 2003, where I lead our UK Nature Recovery research theme and the Centre for UK Nature. The Centre delivers research, participative science and training programmes that aim to build the UK’s agency to take evidence-based action for nature. My research group focuses on scalable, tech-enabled methods to help monitor and recover biodiversity in urban spaces: from environmental DNA to acoustic biology.