Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew announces new talk series in collaboration with 5x15
Release date: 18 April 2023
- Launching Wednesday 26 April, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew will co host a new series of events in collaboration with 5x15.
- Five speakers talk for fifteen minutes each about biodiversity loss and protecting life on Earth, and address some of the most important questions of our time.
- The series features three brand new talks - including two virtual events, and one in-person event at Temperate House, Kew Gardens on 21 June.
Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is delighted to collaborate with 5x15 on a new series of talks. 5x15 has been running panels since 2008, bringing world leading figures to speak to audiences to spark ideas and inspiration. This is the first time they have partnered with RBG Kew, a world-leading scientific organisation, to host three events during spring and summer 2023 with speakers from across different sectors including RBG Kew’s own scientific and horticultural experts.
The series launches on 26 April with a free virtual panel about Foods of the Future. From the benefits of no-dig gardening and new crop techniques, to the versatility of legumes and the power of regenerative farming, this discussion will offer an exciting look at how we keep our diets diverse and sustainable in the future.
Speakers include Sarah Langford, author of Rooted, Helena Dove, horticultural botanist and manager of Kew Garden’s Kitchen Garden, Dr Caspar Chater, plant scientist and advisor to the Beans is How campaign, and Anna Taylor, Executive Director of The Food Foundation, who will be in conversation with cross-bench peer and 5x15 co-founder Rosie Boycott.
The second free online event will take place on Wednesday 24 May and focus on trees and forests. Speakers will explore how we can learn from trees, look at different tree species and discuss tree planting as a form of greenwashing. The series will culminate with a very special live 5x15 event in the Temperate House at Kew Gardens on Wednesday 21 June. RBG Kew’s Director of Science, Prof Alexandre Antonelli reveals the wonders of biodiversity and our role in protecting it, with further speakers and topics to be announced soon.
ENDS
Free tickets are available to book now for Foods of the Future | Wednesday 26 April | 18:30 - 20:00 BST | Find more information on the event page
The in-person paid event will take place on Wednesday 21 June 19.00 - 21:00 at The Temperate House, Kew Gardens on the Summer Solstice evening. Audience members will have access to the gardens.
For more information requests please contact: Charlotte Newell, PR Manager c.newell@kew.org
Notes to Editors
About Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a world-famous scientific organisation, internationally respected for its outstanding collections and scientific expertise in plant and fungal diversity, conservation, and sustainable development in the UK and around the globe. Kew’s scientists and partners lead the way in the fight against biodiversity loss and finding nature-based solutions to the climate crisis, aided by five key scientific priorities outlined in Kew’s Science Strategy 2021-2025. Kew Gardens is also a major international and top London visitor attraction. Kew’s 132 hectares of historic, landscaped gardens, and Wakehurst, Kew’s Wild Botanic Garden and ‘living laboratory’, attract over 2.5 million visits every year. Kew Gardens was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2003 and celebrated its 260th anniversary in 2019. Wakehurst is home to the Millennium Seed Bank, the largest wild plant seed bank in the world and a safeguard against the disastrous effects of climate change and biodiversity loss. RBG Kew received approximately one third of its funding from Government through the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and research councils. Further funding needs to support RBG Kew’s vital scientific and educational work comes from donors, memberships and commercial activity including ticket sales. For tickets, please visit www.kew.org/kew-gardens/visit-kew-gardens/tickets. In the first six months since implementing a new accessibility scheme for those in receipt of Universal Credit, Pension Credit and Legacy Benefits, Kew has welcomed over 20,000 visitors with £1 tickets.
About 5x15
5x15 is one of the UK's leading producers of public-facing spoken-word events. Founded by Rosie Boycott, Daisy Leitch and Eleanor O’Keeffe, 5x15 brings world leading figures to speak to audiences to spark ideas and inspiration. Over 1,200 world-class speakers have graced 5x15's stage since 2008, reaching a global audience of millions through live events and the 5x15 podcast and Youtube channel. In 2020, in response to the pandemic, 5x15 went virtual with a model of inclusive and free access, distributing over 100,000 tickets to our committed audience and global community of subscribers. Renowned for the quality of curation, skilled storytelling, and inspirational and informative speakers, our events have featured Gloria Steinem, Emma Watson, Werner Herzog, Jung Chang, Ben Okri, Christiana Figueres, Ralph Fiennes, Rebecca Solnit, Daniel Kahneman, Mary Beard and Malcolm Gladwell, to name but a few.