Grow Your Future: new digital careers hub from the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew set to inspire the next generation into green careers

Today, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew proudly launches Grow Your Future, a new digital careers hub which aims to inspire the next generation to cultivate careers in science, horticulture and the natural world. This openly accessible, free-to-use platform allows young people to step into a day in the life of Kew staff and discover what it is like to work across a range of different fields. Featuring detailed first-person Q&As alongside accessible video content and behind-the-scenes photography, Grow Your Future illustrates the abundance of career pathways available within the green sector, whilst showcasing the skills which are needed to progress within specialised areas.

According to the 2022 report from Learning and Work Insitute, Skills for a net-zero economy: Insights from employers and young people, data shows that 80% of young people surveyed would like to work for an organisation committed to tackling climate change but the biggest barrier is a lack of understanding about green skills and careers. This new, digital hub from Kew, provides valuable information on the varied careers available encompassing over twenty different roles, from botanical artist to mycologist, from seed bank scientist to digitisation officer.

The platform is aimed at young people, as well as teachers and careers advisors across UK schools and colleges. Grow Your Future will also support teachers in advancing their school climate action plans (a requirement from the Department for Education) through inspiring young people to consider how their existing interests and passions could lead them towards a green career. The hub has been specifically designed to be filtered by interest category as well as by specific role, so users can discover careers based on what inspires them, whether that be adventure and travel, being creative, being outdoors or science and analysis.

Grow Your Future is part of Endeavour, Kew’s free interactive library of teaching resources. Endeavour has everything which teachers need to deliver inspiring lessons about plant science and the environment, with innovative teaching resources and curriculum-aligned activities for pupils of all ages.

Julia Willison, Head of Learning & Participation at RBG Kew says: “The Grow Your Future platform is a wonderfully rich and detailed resource which explores and illuminates the array of careers which are available to the next generation within an organisation such as RBG Kew. By bringing this content into schools and colleges, we can inspire young people with the sheer variety of opportunities available across these specialisms. Training the next generation of experts in green careers is vital and we want to motivate young people to develop the skills and experience needed to work in similar roles.”

The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, is dedicated to harnessing the power of plants and fungi to end the extinction crisis and secure a future for all life on Earth. With Kew’s world-leading research, global partnerships, and beloved Gardens – home to the world’s most diverse collections of plants and fungi – Kew is using its trusted voice to shape policy and practice worldwide. As a charity, Kew relies on the critical support of its visitors, not only to sustain the gardens, but to protect global plant and fungal biodiversity for the benefit of our planet and humanity.

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For further information please contact: pr@kew.org