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COMMUNICATION TOOLKIT

A resource for BGANZ members

September 2011

BGANZ COMMUNICATION TOOLKITSeptember 2011

CONTENTS

PURPOSE OF THIS TOOLKIT....................................................................................................................3

HOW TO USE THIS TOOLKIT...................................................................................................................3

THE NEED FOR THIS TOOLKIT................................................................................................................4

HOW THIS TOOLKIT WAS DEVELOPED...................................................................................................4

TOOLS AND RESOURCES........................................................................................................................4

1. Communications strategy framework...........................................................................................5

2. Tagline...........................................................................................................................................8

3. Key messages.................................................................................................................................8

4. PowerPoint presentation.............................................................................................................13

5. One-page key message summary fact sheet................................................................................25

6. Additional fact sheets/handouts..................................................................................................26

7. Core editorial...............................................................................................................................31

8. Stakeholder questions and checklist template............................................................................33

9. Tips for persuasive writing...........................................................................................................34

10. Tips for dealing with the media.................................................................................................35

11. Tips for lobbying........................................................................................................................37

ATTACHMENT A: SITUATION ASSESSMENT/BACKGROUND INFORMATION........................................38

Toolkit developed for BGANZ by CINDEN LESTER | COMMUNICATIONS of 51


PURPOSE OF THIS TOOLKIT

Botanic Gardens Australia and New Zealand Incorporated (BGANZ) has developed this communication toolkit to assist members—especially regional members—demonstrate the economic, social and environmental value of gardens.

When you work in a lean organisation, you can often feel time-poor and may consider that promoting your garden’s many values is too time consuming, daunting or expensive to add to your other responsibilities. This toolkit can make it easier for you by providing core resources that can reduce the preparation time and increase your confidence and skills in this area.

Note, this toolkit uses the term ‘botanic garden’ to refer to all botanic gardens, arboreta and other BGANZ member organisations.

HOW TO USE THIS TOOLKIT

The toolkit includes a range of resources such as key messages, a core PowerPoint presentation, a one-page key message summary and fact sheet handouts. It is designed as a starting point, so you can select the resources most useful to your particular circumstances and easily adapt them to meet your individual needs. The aim is to help you effectively communicate with various audiences about the important role, value and relevance of your garden. For example, you might:

use the research in the situation assessment along with the key messages, tips and resources to reduce the preparation time required for communication and profile-raising activities (e.g. write a media release, write a letter to the Editor, generate interest for a radio interview, provide information to interested groups or clubs, write a newsletter article or blog entry, write a letter to a local politician, or contribute to a funding application or submission to government)

use the PowerPoint presentation as the basis for a professional address to government, potential corporate sponsors, community partners or local clubs

use the messages to enhance your preparation and confidence for media interviews or speeches

share the information in this kit with other staff so that everyone who talks to your key audiences can provide consistent messages about the value of your garden

provide the fact sheet handouts following presentations, high level discussions or VIP tours

draw on the messages when seeking management support for investment in professional development, training or networking opportunities

use the messages and fact sheets to help engage with related industries such as nursery bodies

provide the fact sheets to your Friends group for their information and use

incorporate messages and fact sheets into staff induction and training materials

add relevant information from the toolkit to your garden’s website

use relevant information to write or update a brochure about your garden

add relevant messages to advertising or listings for special events.



THE NEED FOR THIS TOOLKIT

Botanic gardens are significant institutions, visited by millions of people every year. However, the sector tends to ‘fly under the radar’ and gardens are often not recognised as key contributors to social, environmental and economic outcomes for communities (tourism, environment and sustainability education, recreation, cultural heritage, social cohesion, botanical and horticultural research and survey).

This lack of understanding and recognition can make it challenging to obtain funds, whether from corporate sponsorships or through internal support for budget bids within a government context. Effective communication about the sector, in particular its contributions to society (roles, values and relevance), can increase success in seeking both support and funds in a competitive marketplace. BGANZ members identified both this issue and the need for professional capacity building as priorities in the 2009 member survey.

The Council therefore decided to fund the development of this communication toolkit aimed to assist BGANZ members in increasing their profile and undertaking effective communications and marketing.

HOW THIS TOOLKIT WAS DEVELOPED

Research and background informationThe tools and resource are based on analysis of research findings and other available background information. Research for this toolkit included:

a short online BGANZ member survey (32 responses received)

interviews with 19 BGANZ member representatives from regional and capital city gardens

a desktop study of public information about the environmental, social and economic value of botanic gardens

consideration of the draft BGANZ business plan, various images, visitor comments and other information such as media coverage, received from interviewees and nominated garden representatives.

This information is summarised in the Situation assessment/background information at Attachment A, which includes:

a summary of the communication environment for botanic gardens (strengths and challenges)

background information on botanic gardens (history, purpose, range, resources, income and economic impact, Australian sector statistical results, visitor numbers, experience, and reasons for visiting, responses to the 2011 BGANZ member survey to help inform this toolkit, background on biodiversity and climate change and the role of botanic gardens in responding).

The details in Attachment A may be of interest as an extra resource for users of the toolkit.



TOOLS AND RESOURCES

1. Communications strategy frameworkThis brief communication strategy framework is for added context around how you might use the tools and resources in this toolkit.

The role of communications

Communication supports your work by linking you and your audiences/stakeholders. Good communication means getting the right information to the right people at the right time. Good communication is also two-way, which involves listening to your audiences/stakeholders and using what you learn to improve the way you engage with them.

Before you start

To improve the effectiveness of your communication, it helps to consider these key questions first:

what is the purpose of your communication—what do you want your audience to know or do as a result of the information you give them?

who is your audience and what is their current knowledge or opinion about your garden?

what is the best way/format to provide the information to this audience?

how much time have you got to prepare?

what other resources or issues do you need to consider?

Basic communications strategy

Regardless of the intention and scope of your communication, a strategic approach will increase your success. Having a strategy or plan helps you focus your efforts and make the most of available resources.

Communications strategies work best when tailored to meet particular communication needs and achieve specific results but there are several basic components to any useful strategy. These are listed in the basic communications strategy template below with some explanatory information and suggestions to help you create your own tailored strategy.

* * *

Strategy template

Executive summary

If your strategy is more than four or five pages, you might like to include a short executive summary that explains at a glance the main thrust of your communication efforts and what you aim to achieve. This can be quite useful if the strategy is being presented to management, possible business partners, sources of finance or funding bodies. Even though this comes first, it’s easier to write it last—after you have nutted out your full strategy.



Situation assessment/research

Summarise what you know (the Situation assessment at Attachment A of this toolkit is an example). The situation assessment may include your understanding of your audience for the purpose of this communication, your current situation including strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, and any other information relevant to the particular communication project.

Strategy objectives

Spell out what you want to achieve through your strategy (for example, raising awareness, increase visitor numbers, gain Council support). Try to make these as specific and measurable as possible so you can evaluate your efforts against them down the track.

Target audiences

Clarify exactly who you intend to communicate with. It can be useful to break this list down into sub-groups (for example, volunteers, staff, government, non-government, community leaders and influencers and visitors—this last group may further broken down by age, location, interests etc.).

You may also find it helpful to prioritise this list, note what they already know, how you have previously communicated with them and what you need to communicate to each group—this can help you tailor your messages and activities accordingly (see Marketing/communications mix below).

Key messages

Draw on a set of agreed key messages for all communication activities—from advertising to media releases, brochures to websites, and presentations to correspondence (the Key messages included in this toolkit are an example).

Effective key messages support your positioning and help to bring your audience onboard. They clearly articulate your point and the benefits to your audience. Many of your key messages probably already exist in various forms, and just need refining and compiling so that they can be used consistently across all material. As noted above, you may tailor some of your messages for different groups within your target audience.

Issues management

Identify and agree on approaches to potentially difficult or sensitive issues as part of your planning. This may mean having an agreed spokesperson and position for particular issues. For example, developing a few Q&As that address a specific topic means you can respond quickly, consistently and accurately if needed.

Marketing/communications mix

Spell out what activities and products you are going to use to communicate with your target audience. For example, this may include:

internal communication - provide staff briefings



- present to management - conduct staff training - hand out staff information/induction kits- hold staff meetings or workshops

media relations - send out a media release—regional newspapers are always looking for local

content, especially if you can offer an interesting photo opportunity - generate interest for media interviews—regional radio can be particularly

effective at getting the word out- write an article for a specialist magazine, newsletter or journal- send a Letter to the Editor

publications - write a regular newsletter - contribute to the BGANZ newsletter- develop a brochure, flyer or poster

electronic communication- post blog entries- create or update your website- produce a regular e-news update

events - hold a special event (e.g. seasonal, related to a particular project, to celebrate a

milestone or anniversary) - launch something new- hold a competition

community relations- provide information/presentations to interested groups or clubs - write a direct mail letter - hold a workshop or seminar- have a networking lunch- host a business breakfast- develop a proposal for potential local community partners- develop a sponsorship proposal - invite VIPs and decision makers for private tours

paid advertising- newspaper- radio - milk cartons- fridge magnets.

Budget/resources

Think carefully about costs, including staff and consultants where necessary.



Deadline/timeframe

Map out what you will do when. This helps pace your various activities and plan your workload.

Evaluation

Set out how you will know if you succeed. Evaluation helps make sure your messages and mix are on target and allows you to adjust things if you need to. As well as reviewing the success of your efforts against your specific objectives, simple ways of tracking include:

asking all new visitors how they found out about your garden

recording visitor numbers and sales after specific advertising

conducting visitor satisfaction surveys

monitoring media interest and coverage

noting feedback from management/decision makers/other important stakeholders

monitoring subscriptions to and feedback about newsletters, blog posts etc

tracking website hits

keeping a list of general enquiries.

2. TaglineIt can be useful to have a key phrase or ‘tagline’ that identifies your captures the essence of what botanic gardens are all about. In advertising, the tagline is often referred to as capturing the mission, promise and brand. The suggested tagline which can be used in a variety of ways to support your communications is:

Botanic gardens—connecting, conserving, contributing

You can see how this works in the attached tools such as the one-page key message communications summary template, core PowerPoint presentation and additional fact sheets.

3. Key messagesYou can use the suggested key messages in a wide range of promotional activities and materials to help ensure clarity, consistency and stronger communication. Each message is written to stand-alone if necessary, which means there is some repetition if read together. You can edit and adapt these key messages as necessary for your purposes, depending on your audience and what you want to achieve with your communication.

The messages are presented in a hierarchy that enables you to select the general high level messages that suite your needs, and combine them with the more detailed messages about the social, environmental and economic value of gardens as relevant to your garden.

You can then add your own specific messages about your garden to further personalise your information.



Key message hierarchy

Basic description

Botanic gardens are innovative and special places that blend plant conservation, education, recreation, culture and science. They collect, document, study, exchange and display plants for research and conservation, and for public education and enjoyment.1

Australian and New Zealand botanic gardens are known for their rich diversity, from bushland and native grasslands to arid-zone ecosystems and desert parks, and from tropical environments to tranquil parks and traditional landscaped gardens.

General high-level messages

1. Botanic gardens are precious community assets that improve our quality of life. They are unique in their ability to deliver social, economic and environmental benefits for communities.

2. Botanic gardens are advocates for plants and life on earth. As leaders in plant conservation, research and education, botanic gardens are living museums that provide a safety net for plant species.

3. Botanic gardens bring communities together. They are much-loved places that connect people with plants, create memories and link generations, and contribute to our wellbeing and health.

4. Botanic gardens generate income for our economy. They are among our most popular cultural venues, attracting millions of locals and tourists every year. Gardens also add to the economy by providing horticultural and other services, training and employment.

1 Includes adapted words from the description in Australian Bureau of Statistics, Year Book Australia 2009–10 (cat. no. 1301.0) <www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/[email protected]/Latestproducts/1301.0Feature%20Article12009–10?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=1301.0&issue=2009–10&num=&view>, viewed 27 Match 2011 and the description (attributed to Wyse Jackson, 1999) in V Kuzevanov & S Sizykh, ‘Botanic Gardens Resources: Tangible and Intangible Aspects of Linking Biodiversity and Human Well-Being’, Hiroshima Peace Science Journal, 28 (2006), pp. 113–134, <http://bogard.isu.ru/articles/hiroshima/kuzevanov_jpc2006.pdf>, viewed 29 March 2011


Basic description

To be added by you:

Your own specific messages about your garden

More detailed messages about social, environmental and economic values

General high-level messages

(e.g. local statistics, achievements, case studies, important developments, activities, human interest stories)

http://bogard.isu.ru/articles/hiroshima/kuzevanov_jpc2006.pdf

http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/[email protected]/Latestproducts/1301.0Feature%20Article12009%E2%80%9310?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=1301.0&issue=2009%E2%80%9310&num=&view

http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/[email protected]/Latestproducts/1301.0Feature%20Article12009%E2%80%9310?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=1301.0&issue=2009%E2%80%9310&num=&view


More detailed messages about social, environmental and economic values

CONNECTING—more detailed messages about social values

1. Botanic gardens are places of natural beauty and must-see tourist attractions visited by millions of people every year. They are places where people of all ages and backgrounds can enjoy and appreciate the values of plants and gardens.

2. People and communities come together in botanic gardens for many different reasons—to relax, walk, read, play, meet friends, attend events, and learn about plants and horticulture, the environment and sustainability.

3. Botanic gardens are significant community facilities. They engage communities—inspiring informing and connecting people with each other and with the environment.

4. Botanic gardens are friendly, safe, open spaces that are good for the soul. They offer a retreat from busy modern day life where people can enjoy fresh air and gentle exercise or quiet contemplation.

5. Botanic gardens are outdoor living classrooms that provide a unique learning environment for students, teachers and the wider public.

6. Many families and friends have powerful connections to botanic gardens that hold special memories. Parents bringing their children recall visiting the garden years ago with their own parents and grandparents. Groups meet in the same place year after year for special occasions or anniversaries. Botanic gardens have universal appeal across the generations.

7. Botanic gardens are versatile ‘living artworks’. They provide the perfect backdrop for a wide range of social uses including art, sculpture and touring exhibitions; film, theatre and music events; community festivals; and family and social gatherings like weddings, reunions or birthday parties.

8. As well as celebrating the vital role of plants in our lives, many botanic gardens are also valued for their rich natural and cultural heritage including historic areas and buildings.

9. Research shows that older Australians who volunteer with botanic gardens experience benefits including contributing to a good cause, connecting with plants and the natural environment, feeling valued, meeting other people and keeping an active mind. There were also additional benefits of general wellbeing from volunteering with botanic gardens.2

CONSERVING—more detailed messages about environmental values

1. All life on earth depends on plants. Healthy ecosystems—based on plant diversity—sustain life and are essential to the wellbeing and livelihoods of all humankind. Plants are a vital source of oxygen, food, shelter, fuel, clothing and medicines. Botanic gardens play a key role in safeguarding the world’s plant diversity and educating people in environmental issues.

2 Growing plants, Growing People: Older volunteers in botanic gardens, National Seniors Australia Productive Ageing Centre, May 2011, a report based on a study by Dr Emily Moskwa, Dr Gary Crilley and Jessica Clark from the Centre for Tourims and Leisure Management, University of South Australia, <www.bganz.org.au/node/62>. The original study is available in full at <www.productiveageing.com.au>.



2. As well as beautiful and interesting places to visit, many botanic gardens are scientific storehouses of plant resources, knowledge and expertise. For four centuries, botanic gardens have led research and generated much of our knowledge about plants and how to grow them (botany and horticulture).

3. Botanic gardens have the power to influence people and policy. They are leaders in preservation, conservation and education in environmental practices. They encourage sustainable living through education programs as well as work outside the garden gates such as community greening projects.

4. Botanic gardens promote sustainable use and management of the natural environment, which is the foundation of conservation. They are important sites of plant conservation because they maintain plants away from their natural habitat (ex situ conservation) and have a significant role in education.3 This is a particularly valuable role, especially for regional gardens, as ex situ conservation work links in with other local land care and natural resource management initiatives, creating strong centres for regional conservation. Also related to this is the significant role that botanic gardens play in public education.

5. The diverse plant life in botanic gardens often also provides important habitats for a wide array of native bird life and often also native wildlife.

6. Australia’s 20,000 vascular plant species are the centrepiece of Australia’s landscapes. They represent 10% of the world’s plant species and 90% are unique to Australia. Plants provide the living structure and the primary productivity of Australia’s ecosystems, which support Australia’s vast array of life. Their multiple uses and functions provide diverse and invaluable services for the wellbeing of society, including the uptake of atmospheric carbon, oxygenation of air and water, and production of food, building materials and medicinal products.4 The collections of living and preserved plants and seeds held by botanic gardens are a critical biological resource of information on plant biodiversity.

7. As many as two-thirds of the world’s plant species are in danger of extinction this century, threatened by population growth, deforestation, habitat loss, destructive development, over consumption of resources, the spread of alien invasive species and agricultural expansion.5 Many botanic gardens are involved in projects that identify and protect rare or threatened plants.

8. Australia has experienced the largest documented decline in biodiversity of any continent over the past 200 years.6 Many botanic gardens are involved in cultivating and preserving threatened species. Currently in Australia, a total of 1,342 species are listed as threatened flora. This includes 47 that are extinct, 113 that are critically endangered, 531 that are endangered and 651 that are vulnerable.7

3 Council of Heads of Australian Botanic Gardens (CHABG), National Strategy and Action Plan for the Role of Australia’s Botanic Gardens in Adapting to Climate Change, November 20084 CHABG, National Strategy and Action Plan for the Role of Australia’s Botanic Gardens in Adapting to Climate Change5 Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI), The Gran Canaria Declaration calling for a Global Program for Plant Conservation, 2000 <www.cbd.int/doc/meetings/cop/cop-05/information/cop-05-inf-32-en.pdf>, viewed 23 May 2011 6 Australian Bureau of Statistics, Year Book Australia 2009–107 Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) List of Threatened Flora, <www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicthreatenedlist.pl?wanted=flora>, viewed 23 May 2011


http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicthreatenedlist.pl?wanted=flora

http://www.cbd.int/doc/meetings/cop/cop-05/information/cop-05-inf-32-en.pdf


9. Botanic gardens can play an important role in educating about and adapting to climate change during this critical decade for action:

Plants are central to cycles of the planet.

People and plants will determine the future of climate change. Plants do, and people can, reduce the impact and adapt to climate change.

Botanic gardens are special places with an essential role in research, education and conservation. They provide a forum for communicating about the impacts of climate change on plants and biodiversity.8

10. Botanic gardens provide expert advice and positively influence decisions and planning beyond their boundaries. For example, they provide advice on tree scapes, master planning and planting plans, weed management and care of native landscapes, plant selection and sustainable gardening at home.

11. In urban areas, botanic gardens are green refuges that help our cities breathe.

CONTRIBUTING—more detailed messages about economic values

1. Botanic gardens are among our most popular cultural venues. There is good economic value in having a botanic garden as part of a region’s suite of tourism attractions.

2. In Australia, more people visit botanic gardens than art galleries, museums or libraries. More than one third (35%) of Australian adults—6.2 million people—visited botanic gardens at least once during 2009–10.9

3. Botanic gardens are strong drawcards for domestic and international tourists. Nature-based visitors to Australia stay almost twice as long as other international visitors and spend 80% of international visitor dollars.10

4. In New Zealand, visiting gardens is one of the top activities for international tourists, with gardens attracting around half a million visitors a year since 2006.11

5. Botanic gardens are also popular destinations for New Zealand families, especially those with young children.12

6. Many botanic gardens are paying their way. Around 31% of visitors now spend money when they visit a botanic garden.13 They also present unique opportunities for community partnerships and corporate sponsorships.

8 Agreed climate change messages in the National Strategy and Action Plan for the Role of Australia’s Botanic Gardens in Adapting to Climate Change9 Australian Bureau of Statistics, Attendance at Selected Cultural Venues and Events, Australia 2009–10 (cat. no. 4114.0), <www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/[email protected]/Lookup/4114.0Main+Features12005-06>, viewed 25 March 201110 Australian Bureau of Statistics, Year Book Australia 2009–1011 Ministry of Economic Development, International Visitor Survey data, <http://ocv.onlinedatacentre.com/mot/OAPAnalysis.html?c=IVS%20-%20Activities%20-%20Table.cub>, viewed 18 May 2011 12 A Reis, A Thompson, B Lovelock & M Boyes (2010), Planting the seed: Family preferences, experiences and benefits associated with outdoor recreation in Aotearoa/New Zealand, Centre for Recreation Research, Department of Tourism, School of Business, University of Otago, <www.crr.otago.ac.nz/docs/Sparc%20family%20report%20with%20cover.pdf>, viewed 18 May 201113 CHBAG website, <www.chabg.gov.au/abg/index.html>, viewed 10 March 2011


http://www.chabg.gov.au/abg/index.html

http://www.crr.otago.ac.nz/docs/Sparc%20family%20report%20with%20cover.pdf

http://ocv.onlinedatacentre.com/mot/OAPAnalysis.html?c=IVS%20-%20Activities%20-%20Table.cub

http://ocv.onlinedatacentre.com/mot/OAPAnalysis.html?c=IVS%20-%20Activities%20-%20Table.cub

http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/[email protected]/Lookup/4114.0Main+Features12005-06


7. Botanic gardens add to local economies. They provide a return on investment by attracting visitors who spend time and money in the local area. For example, an economic impact assessment of Hamilton Gardens in New Zealand found that for every $2 invested in the gardens, about $8.90 was added to the city’s economy.14

8. Botanic gardens provide education, training and employment opportunities. They create jobs and provide specialist training and skills development in areas ranging from horticulture to garden design, sustainability to scientific research, and plant conservation to public education.

9. There is economic value in conservation and sustainability. Healthy communities also support healthy economies. Botanic gardens are active, vital resources that contribute to both these outcomes.

10. Gardens also provide services and employment in their local region, ranging from biodiversity conservation and scientific research to public education and awareness to plant nurseries, onsite shops and cafes. Services that extend beyond the garden gates include plant identification, pest diagnosis, weed research, education and training, ornamental and commercial horticulture, landscaping, master planning and horticultural advice.

4. PowerPoint presentation The PowerPoint presentation has been designed as a stand-alone presentation about the values of botanic gardens.

The presentation is provided as a separate PowerPoint file attached to this toolkit.

The PowerPoint text content—which can be viewed in the ‘Notes’ section of each slide in the PowerPoint file—is also included below, after the PowerPoint guidelines.

This presentation:

clearly identifies the values of botanic gardens

depicts gardens in a professional and aesthetically appealing way

includes reference to BGANZ and its role

includes key facts and figures about the sector in general.

You can modify the presentation to include local content.

‘Local content guidelines’ are included at the bottom of the notes pages of the relevant slides.

14 BGANZ, The Botanic Garden newsletter, issue 29 March 2011, pp. 14–15



PowerPoint guidelines

Content

In keeping with best practice for the use of PowerPoint, the presentation is:

short—limited to 15 slides (18 if local content is added)

simple—using minimal effects so the audience is not distracted by bells and whistles

clean, professional and consistently set out—the design complements the other products developed for this toolkit including the one-page key message communications summary which can be left as a handout

an appropriate visual aid that uses a mix of images and limited text to reinforce the messages—the aim is to use the medium to help tell the story not overload the audience with detailed information or long lists. The detailed content is in the notes rather in the slides themselves, so the audience’s main focus is on the presenter rather than trying to read too-detailed notes on screen

easy to see and read—where text is used, it is large and limited to just a few words per slide.

Preparation and delivery

Here are some tips to help you give better presentations:

know your objective—why are you giving this presentation, what do you want your audiences to do as a result? Clarify your objective: ‘By the end of my presentation, the audience will...’

know our audience—Who are they? What is in it for them? Why should they be interested and how will they benefit from what you are telling them?

know your topic—work out your main points and support them with relevant facts, examples, personal experiences, stories and statistics as appropriate.

keep the content guidelines (above) in mind when developing new slides

talk to your audience, not the screen

practice, practice, practice (out loud) to build confidence

anticipate questions so that you are prepared to answer—be honest if you need to check and get back to someone with an answer

check your equipment beforehand (have a backup plan just in case)

take handouts—tell your audience you will provide handouts, but don’t actually pass them around until you finish your presentation (otherwise the audience will be distracted reading your handouts instead of listening to you)

take a deep breath, relax and be yourself—try to be natural, smile and make eye contact

consider when NOT to use PowerPoint—sometimes it is better to speak directly with your audience. For example, if you are not properly prepared with your presentation slides and equipment, if it is a small group or more intimate setting, or if a guided tour or hands-on demonstration would be more persuasive.



Technical

Here are some basic technical tips to help you use and personalise your PowerPoint presentation:

Getting started—Open the PowerPoint file called ‘BGANZ core PowerPoint presentation.ppt’.

‘External content’ warning—When you open the file or choose to view the presentation in ‘slide show’ mode, you may received an automatic security warning asking if you want to enable data connections. You can select the option to ‘Help protect me from unknown content (recommended)’.

Reviewing the presentation—If it does not automatically open in ‘Normal view’, select this option from the ‘Presentation Views’ options. This allows you to see the slide pane (the big area in the middle), the place holders (boxes with dotted lines for inserting text or other images), thumbnails (small versions of your slides on the left), and the speaker’s notes pane (below the slide pane).

Reading your speaker’s notes—Hold your curser over the split bar separating the slide and notes panes until you see the little arrows pointing up and down, then left click your mouse and, holding it down, drag the notes pane up to the desired position. You can read longer notes pages by sliding the bar down the right-hand side of the notes pane.

Viewing the slide show—To see how slide show will play (including the minimal animation included that fades in each slide), select ‘Slide show’. You can then watch from the beginning or from the current slide. The slides will fill your whole screen and you can use ‘page down’ or left click your mouse to go to the next slide. ‘Page up’ will take you backwards and ‘Esc’ will exit the full screen slide show.

Adding your logo—The template is set up with the BGANZ logo in the top left hand corner. If you want to add your garden’s logo, you can remove the BGANZ logo from Slides 7 – 9 and insert your logo in its place. To do this:

- left click on your logo file from another PowerPoint presentation or Word template, and once it is highlighted, right click to select ‘copy’

- open the presentation and locate the slide where you want to and insert your logo

- move your curser over the centre of the BGANZ logo and right click your mouse

- once the BGANZ logo is selected, you can select ‘Delete’ to remove it from that slide

- right click and ‘Paste’ your logo in place of the BGANZ logo, lining it up in the top left corner.

Changing images—To replace an existing image with a different one from your garden:

- left click on the image you want to replace, and delete it

- select ‘Insert > Picture’ and locate your image file

- left click, hold and drag the image to the position you want

- resize the image, add the photo frame and the shadow by selecting the matching effects from the ‘Format’ options.

Adding new slides—Your toolkit also contains a PowerPoint file called ‘BGANZ core PowerPoint templates.ppt’, which includes blank versions of the different slide styles available.



You can open this file, select and copy the template you want to use and then past it into your presentation.

Duplicating an existing slide—You can copy an existing slide and then re-work the content:

- right click on the slide you want to duplicate

- when the slide is highlighted, left click for options and select ‘Duplicate slide’

- the duplicated slide will appear below the original

- move your curser down to the duplicated slide

- right click in the slide pane, highlight the text or images you want to change and delete/replace them with your new content.

Printing your presentation and notes—When you are ready to print out your presentation:

- go to the Microsoft Office Button , point to ‘Print’ and click on ‘Print preview’

- select the type of printout by clicking the arrow in the ‘Print What’ box (select ‘Notes pages’ to print both the slides and the speaker’s notes)

- select ‘Print’.

Saving your presentation—After you have proof read, practiced and finetuned your presentation, you can save or ‘Save as’ your PowerPoint file to the appropriate folder in your system and to your USB and/or burn to CD.

Packaging your presentation—If you have other files or media links that relate to your presentation, you can package your PowerPoint and associated files it to a CD, USB or laptop that you will use to deliver your presentation. Use the ‘Package for CD’ feature to bundle all your presentation files and copy them to a folder or CD:

- go to the Microsoft Office Button , point to ‘Publish’ and click on the option you want

- Microsoft advises that you can package it in the Microsoft Office PowerPoint 2007 Viewer, which enables you to show it on a computer that doesn't have PowerPoint, or package it just as it is, to be presented within PowerPoint.

More detailed tutorials about working with PowerPoint 2007 (and other versions) are available on Microsoft’s website.

Follow the prompts from <http://office.microsoft.com/en-au/training/?CTT=97>.

Or check the quick reference guide at <http://office.microsoft.com/en-au/training/quick-reference-card-RZ010186615.aspx?section=31&mode=print>.


http://office.microsoft.com/en-au/training/quick-reference-card-RZ010186615.aspx?section=31&mode=print

http://office.microsoft.com/en-au/training/quick-reference-card-RZ010186615.aspx?section=31&mode=print

http://office.microsoft.com/en-au/training/?CTT=97


Text and slide images from the PowerPoint presentation

Slide 1 Welcome / Hello / Thank you ... [as appropriate]

My name is .... and I am glad to be here to talk with you about [focus of your presentation].

Local content guideline: Personalise your introduction as much as possible so it focuses on your audience’s needs rather than your own interests. When you explain the focus of your presentation it should answer the question ‘What’s in it for me?’ for your audience.

Slide 2 If I asked you ‘What is a botanic garden?’ what would you say?

Trees? Flowers? Meandering pathways? A nice place to have a picnic?

You wouldn’t be wrong, exactly. But botanic gardens are far more than that.

Botanic gardens are precious community assets that improve the quality of our lives.

They are unique in their ability to deliver social, economic and environmental benefits for communities.

And [garden name] is no exception.

Local content guideline: If you want to personalise your introduction further, consider starting with an anecdote, experience or personal memory that draws your audience in and raises the question of what a botanic garden is, or how it has potential to be so many different things to different people.

Slide 3 Botanic gardens are innovative and special places that blend plant conservation, education, recreation, culture and science.

They collect, document, study, exchange and display plants for research and conservation, and for public education and enjoyment.

They are often described as the interface between people and plants, as places that connect or reconnect us to nature.

Let’s dig a little deeper, because there is a lot more to that than meets the eye...



Slide 4 Botanic gardens are significant community facilities.

They engage communities—inspiring, informing and connecting people with each other and with the environment.

They are much-loved places that bring communities together, create memories and link generations, and contribute to our wellbeing and health.

Slide 5 As well as beautiful and interesting places to visit, many botanic gardens are scientific storehouses of plant resources, knowledge and expertise.

They are advocates for plants and life on earth.

As leaders in plant conservation, research and education, botanic gardens are living museums that provide a safety net for plant species.

Slide 6 And botanic gardens generate income for our economy.

They attract millions of locals and tourists every year.

Gardens also add to the economy by providing horticultural and other services, training and employment.

Slide 7 People and communities come together in botanic gardens for many different reasons—to relax, walk, read, play, meet friends, attend events, and learn about plants and horticulture, the environment and sustainability.

Botanic gardens are friendly, safe, open spaces that are good for the soul. They offer a retreat from busy modern day life where people can enjoy fresh air and gentle exercise or quiet contemplation.

Botanic gardens are outdoor living classrooms that provide a unique learning environment for students, teachers and the wider public.

Many families and friends have powerful connections to botanic gardens that hold special memories. Parents bringing their children recall visiting the garden years ago



with their own parents and grandparents. Groups meet in the same place year after year for special occasions or anniversaries. Botanic gardens have universal appeal across the generations.

They are places where people of all ages and backgrounds can enjoy and appreciate the values of plants and gardens.

They provide the perfect backdrop for a wide range of social uses including art, sculpture and touring exhibitions; film, theatre and music events; community festivals; and family and social gatherings like weddings, reunions or birthday parties.

As well as celebrating the vital role of plants in our lives, many botanic gardens are also valued for their rich natural and cultural heritage including historic areas and buildings.

Research shows that volunteering at botanic gardens is good for health and wellbeing. A study of seniors who volunteer at botanic gardens, found they experience benefits including intellectual stimulation, social interaction and friendships, and a positive emotional state linked to the satisfaction of contributing to a good cause.

Local content guideline: You can add an extra slide with local content here to demonstrate your garden’s social value. For example, is your garden involved in an annual festival, have you initiated successful community-based events, do you run regular tours, exhibitions/demonstrations or programs that receive positive feedback? Do you have active Friends and volunteers? Have you developed a special place for children or visitors with special needs? Do particular groups regularly enjoy your garden, like new parents, seniors or hospital patients? Do you have planting days, open days, holiday programs, competitions or special events that attract strong support from your community? Have you won awards? Do you have some positive visitor comments you can quote?

Slide 8 Botanic gardens play a key role in safeguarding the world’s plant diversity and educating people in environmental issues.

All life on earth depends on plants. Healthy ecosystems—based on plant diversity—sustain life and are essential to the wellbeing and livelihoods of all humankind. Plants are a vital source of oxygen, food, shelter, fuel, clothing, and medicines.



Over four centuries, botanic gardens have led research and generated much of our knowledge about plants and how to grow them.

They are important sites of plant conservation because they maintain plants away from their natural habitat (ex situ conservation). This is a particularly valuable role, especially for regional gardens, as ex situ conservation work links in with other local land care and natural resource management initiatives, creating strong centres for regional conservation.

Also related to this is the significant role that botanic gardens play in public education.

As many as two-thirds of the world’s plant species are in danger of extinction this century, threatened by population growth, deforestation, habitat loss, destructive development, over consumption of resources, the spread of alien invasive species and agricultural expansion.

Australia has experienced the largest documented decline in biodiversity of any continent over the past 200 years. Currently in Australia, a total of 1,342 species are listed as threatened flora. This includes 47 that are extinct, 113 that are critically endangered, 531 that are endangered and 651 that are vulnerable.

Many botanic gardens are involved in projects that identify and protect rare or threatened plants.

Botanic gardens play an important role in educating about and adapting to climate change during this critical decade for action.

Plants are central to cycles of the planet. People and plants will determine the future of climate change. Plants do, and people can, reduce the impact and adapt to climate change.

Many botanic gardens also provide expert advice and positively influence decisions and planning beyond their boundaries. For example, they provide advice on tree scapes, master planning and planting plans, weed management and care of native landscapes, plant selection and sustainable gardening at home.

Local content guideline: You can add an extra slide with local content here to demonstrate your garden’s environmental value. For example, how many species are in your garden? Is your garden involved in ex situ conservation, restoration, recovery, seedbank or other projects that identify and protect rare or threatened



plants? Do you have a science or research program that deliver important findings? Do you provide waterwise or other sustainability demonstrations? Have you provided advice or contributed to planning and policy decisions about landscaping, horticulture and other related issues in your region?

Slide 9 Botanic gardens are among our most popular cultural venues. There is good economic value in having a botanic garden as part of a region’s suite of tourism attractions.

In Australia, more people visit botanic gardens than art galleries, museums or libraries. More than one third (35%) of Australian adults—6.2 million people—visited botanic gardens at least once during 2009–10.

Botanic gardens are strong drawcards for domestic and international tourists. Nature-based visitors to Australia stay almost twice as long as other international visitors and spend 80% of international visitor dollars.

In New Zealand, visiting gardens is one of the top activities for international tourists, with gardens attracting around half a million visitors a year since 2006.

Many botanic gardens are paying their way. Around 31% of visitors now spend money when they visit a botanic garden.

Botanic gardens add to local economies. They provide a return on investment by attracting visitors who spend time and money in the local area. For example, an economic impact assessment of Hamilton Gardens in New Zealand found that for every $2 invested in the gardens, about $8.90 was added to the city’s economy.

They also present unique opportunities for community partnerships and corporate sponsorships.

Gardens also add to the economy by providing horticultural and other services, training and employment.

They create jobs and provide specialist training and skills development in areas ranging from horticulture to garden design, sustainability to scientific research, and plant conservation to public education.

Gardens also provide services and employment in their local region, ranging from biodiversity conservation and scientific research to public education and awareness to plant nurseries, onsite shops and cafes. Services that extend beyond the garden gates include plant identification, pest diagnosis, weed research, education and training, ornamental and commercial horticulture,



landscaping, master planning and horticultural advice.

There is also economic value in conservation and sustainability. Healthy communities also support healthy economies. Botanic gardens are active, vital resources that contribute to both these outcomes.

Local content guideline: You can add an extra slide with local content here to demonstrate your garden’s economic value. For example, how many visitors come to your garden each year? Are you a key tourist attraction for your area? How many people come to your special events? Do you work with other attractions to bring in tourists? How many school groups come through your garden? Do you run a successful plant nursery, coffee shop or gift shop? What sort of activities do your Friends run to generate support and income? What percentage of your workforce is volunteer? Do you have corporate sponsors? Do you have a strong community partnerships or support? Do you offer any services that are paid for by the public, government, industry educational institutions or special interest groups?

Slide 10 In Australia there are eight major botanic gardens in the state and capital cities, and more than 150 regional botanic gardens varying in size from small and local to larger regional gardens. These range from the oldest scientific institution in Australia, Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens, to much newer gardens such as the Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden established in 1996 in Port Augusta, north of Adelaide. Another recent development is the National Arboretum in Canberra, as a response to the 2003 bushfires, which is to be officially opened in 2013.

In New Zealand almost every city and town has at least one botanic garden. Like most overseas botanic gardens, New Zealand’s gardens were mainly set up by governments to trial plants with potential economic benefits and to study exotic and native plants. The focus then changed to ornamental and recreational purposes, and towards the end of the 20th Century New Zealand’s botanic gardens began to take on a greater education role and have recently begun assuming responsibility for the conservation of regionally threatened and uncommon plants.

BGANZ—Botanic Gardens Australia and New Zealand Inc—is the peak membership organisation for botanic gardens and arboreta in Australia and New Zealand.

BGANZ represents the interests of botanic gardens and arboreta—promoting and strengthening their work, values



and achievements in horticulture, education, research and conservation.

As a professional network, BGANZ also:

• provides a forum for sharing expertise, information and best practice standards

• organises high quality, tailored professional development opportunities

• provides an avenue for exchanges and career development

• advocates for plant conservation

• supports plant sciences and social and cultural heritage programs

• builds and maintains national and international links and partnerships

• provides policy and legislative advice affecting botanic gardens.

BGANZ regional groups provide local member networks with mentoring, support and capacity building.

BGANZ has an established website and a regular newsletter. The successful biennial BGANZ Congress is the premier opportunity for face-to-face information exchange and networking on the big picture issues for gardens in conservation, cultural heritage management and inspiring local action on global issues.

Slide 11 So if we return to my opening question: ‘What is a botanic garden?’

A tourism drawcard

A vital scientific storehouse

A playground

A stress reliever

A living artwork

A safety net for plant diversity...

Slide 12 A unique venue for social events

An income generator

A sustainability role model

A good news story

A source of horticultural and botanical advice

An inspiration

A valued community facility...



Slide 13 An outdoor classroom

A place for fresh air and gentle exercise

A place for quiet contemplation

A service provider

A home for local birds and animals

A link to the past

A place to explore

An important player in the response to climate change...

Slide 14 A place for community, family, friends and special memories that last a lifetime...

Botanic gardens are so many things to so many people.

They truly are precious community assets that improve the quality of our lives.

Slide 15 Thank you

[Questions, handouts etc. as appropriate]



5. One-page key message summary fact sheetIt can be useful to leave some hard copy information with your target audience.

Below is text for a one-page summary of key messages. This text has been incorporated into a professionally designed fact sheet template which is attached to this toolkit as a separate Word and PDF file.

You may like to adapt this one-page handout to include local details. It is a good idea to keep it to a single page if possible.

If you want to leave more detailed information with your audiences, there four additional fact sheets that expand on each key theme (see 7. Additional fact sheets).

Text from the one-page key message summary fact sheet

Botanic Gardens—connecting, conserving, contributing

Botanic gardens are innovative and special places that blend plant conservation, education, recreation, culture and science. They are precious community assets that improve our quality of life through their unique ability to deliver social, economic and environmental benefits for communities.

Connecting—social values

Botanic gardens bring communities together. They are much-loved places that connect people with plants, create memories and link generations, and contribute to our wellbeing and health.

People and communities come together in botanic gardens for many different reasons—to relax, walk, read, play, meet friends, attend events, and learn about plants and horticulture, the environment and sustainability. These significant community facilities offer a retreat from busy modern day life, a unique outdoor learning environment for people of all ages, and a versatile venue for a wide range of social uses. Many botanic gardens are also valued for their rich natural and cultural heritage and history.

Conserving—environmental values

Botanic gardens are advocates for plants and life on earth. As leaders in plant conservation, research and education, botanic gardens are living museums that provide a safety net for plant species.

All life on earth depends on plants. Healthy ecosystems—based on plant diversity—sustain life and are essential to the wellbeing and livelihoods of all humankind. Plants are a vital source of oxygen, food, shelter, fuel, clothing and medicines. As well as beautiful and interesting places to visit, botanic gardens are often scientific storehouses of plant



resources, knowledge and expertise. They are important sites of plant conservation because they maintain plants away from their natural habitat (ex situ conservation). Botanic gardens also play a significant role in educating about and adapting to climate change during this critical decade for action.

Contributing—economic values

Botanic gardens generate income for our economy. They are among our most popular cultural venues, attracting millions of locals and tourists every year. Gardens also add to the economy by providing horticultural and other services, training and employment.

In Australia, more people visit botanic gardens than art galleries, museums or libraries. More than one third of Australian adults—6.2 million people—visited botanic gardens at least once during 2009–10. In New Zealand, visiting gardens is one of the top activities for international tourists, with gardens attracting around half a million visitors a year. Many botanic gardens pay their own way, providing a good return on investment.

6. Additional fact sheets/handouts The professionally designed fact sheets are designed to complement the one-page key message communications summary.

There are four additional fact sheets that provide further detail on:

BGANZ—the professional network

The social values of botanic gardens—connecting

The environmental values of botanic gardens—conserving

The economic values of botanic gardens—contributing.

You can provide these handouts following a presentation, give them to media or Friends groups, place them on your website or include them in information kits for potential community partners or sponsors.

The fact sheets are included as separate Word and PDF files attached to this toolkit.

The text is also provided below.

You may like to adapt these fact sheets to include local details (see guidelines for doing this on page 31).



Text from the fact sheet about BGANZ

BGANZ—the professional network

Botanic gardens are innovative and special places that blend plant conservation, education, recreation, culture and science. They collect, document, study, exchange and display plants for research and conservation, and for public education and enjoyment.

Australian and New Zealand botanic gardens are known for their rich diversity, from bushland and native grasslands to arid-zone ecosystems and desert parks, and from tropical environments to tranquil parks and traditional landscaped gardens. In Australia there are eight capital city botanic gardens and more than 150 regional gardens varying in size from small and local to larger regional gardens. In New Zealand almost every city and town has at least one botanic garden.

What we do

BGANZ—Botanic Gardens Australia and New Zealand Inc—is the peak membership organisation for botanic gardens and arboreta in Australia and New Zealand. BGANZ represents the interests of botanic gardens and arboreta, promoting and strengthening their work, values and achievements in horticulture, education, research and conservation.

What we offer members

As a professional network, BGANZ also:

provides a forum for sharing expertise, information and best practice standards

organises high quality, tailored professional development opportunities

provides an avenue for exchanges and career development

advocates for plant conservation

supports plant sciences and social and cultural heritage programs

builds and maintains national and international links and partnerships

provides policy and legislative advice affecting botanic gardens.

BGANZ regional groups provide local member networks with mentoring, support and capacity building.

BGANZ has an established website and a regular newsletter.

The successful biennial BGANZ Congress is the premier opportunity for face-to-face information exchange and networking on the big picture issues for gardens in conservation, cultural heritage management and inspiring local action on global issues.

For more information: phone +61 2 6250 9507 or visit <www.bganz.org.au>



Text from the fact sheet about social values of botanic gardens

The social value of botanic gardens—connecting

Botanic gardens are significant community facilities. They engage communities, inspiring informing and connecting people with each other and with the environment. They are much-loved places that bring communities together, create memories and link generations, and contribute to our wellbeing and health.

Community

People and communities come together in botanic gardens for many different reasons—to relax, walk, read, play, meet friends, attend events, and learn about plants and horticulture, the environment and sustainability.

Health and wellbeing

Botanic gardens are friendly, safe, open spaces that are good for the soul. They offer a retreat from busy modern day life where people can enjoy fresh air and gentle exercise or quiet contemplation.

Research shows that volunteering at botanic gardens is good for health and wellbeing. Seniors who volunteered experience benefits including intellectual stimulation, social interaction and friendships, and a positive emotional state linked to the satisfaction of contributing to a good cause.

Education

Botanic gardens are outdoor living classrooms that provide a unique learning environment for students, teachers and the wider public.

Events

Botanic gardens provide the perfect backdrop for a wide range of social uses including art, sculpture and touring exhibitions; film, theatre and music events; community festivals; and family and social gatherings like weddings, reunions or birthday parties.

Many families and friends have powerful connections to botanic gardens that hold special memories. Parents bringing their children recall visiting the garden years ago with their own parents and grandparents. Groups meet in the same place year after year for special occasions or anniversaries. Botanic gardens have universal appeal across the generations. They are places where people of all ages and backgrounds can enjoy and appreciate the values of plants and gardens.

Heritage

As well as celebrating the vital role of plants in our lives, many botanic gardens are also valued for their rich natural and cultural heritage including historic areas and buildings.



Text from the fact sheet about environmental values of botanic gardens

The environmental value of botanic gardens—conserving

As well as beautiful and interesting places to visit, many botanic gardens are scientific storehouses of plant resources, knowledge and expertise. They are leaders in plant conservation, research and education—unique living museums that provide a safety net for plant species.

Biodiversity

All life on earth depends on plants. Healthy ecosystems—based on plant diversity—sustain life and are essential to the wellbeing and livelihoods of all humankind. Plants are a vital source of oxygen, food, shelter, fuel, clothing, and medicines. However, as many as two-thirds of the world’s plant species are in danger of extinction this century. Australia has experienced the largest documented decline in biodiversity of any continent over the past 200 years. Currently in Australia, a total of 1,342 species are listed as threatened flora.

Botanic gardens are advocates for plants and life on earth, playing a key role in safeguarding the world’s plant diversity. Many are involved in projects that identify and protect rare or threatened plants.

Research and conservation

Over four centuries, botanic gardens have led research and generated much of our knowledge about plants and how to grow them. Botanic gardens are important sites of plant conservation because they maintain plants away from their natural habitat (ex situ conservation). This is a particularly valuable role, especially for regional gardens, as ex situ conservation work links in with other local land care and natural resource management initiatives, creating strong centres for regional conservation.

Awareness and climate change response

Botanic gardens play a significant role educating people about environmental issues and sustainability. These outdoor classrooms provide a unique learning environment for students, teachers and the wider public.

Botanic gardens are also involved in educating about and adapting to climate change during this critical decade for action. Plants are central to cycles of the planet. People and plants will determine the future of climate change. Plants do, and people can, reduce the impact and adapt to climate change.

In addition, many botanic gardens provide expert advice and positively influence decisions and planning beyond their boundaries. For example, they provide advice on tree scapes, master planning and planting plans, weed management and care of native landscapes, plant selection and sustainable gardening at home.



Text from the fact sheet about economic values of botanic gardens

The economic value of botanic gardens—contributing

Botanic gardens generate income for our economy. They attract millions of locals and tourists every year. Gardens also add to the economy by providing horticultural and other services, training and employment.

Tourism

Botanic gardens are among our most popular cultural venues. There is good economic value in having a botanic garden as part of a region’s suite of tourism attractions. In Australia, more people visit botanic gardens than art galleries, museums or libraries. More than one third (35%) of Australian adults—6.2 million people—visited botanic gardens at least once during 2009–10. Botanic gardens are strong drawcards for domestic and international tourists. Nature-based visitors to Australia stay almost twice as long as other international visitors and spend 80% of international visitor dollars.

In New Zealand, visiting gardens is one of the top activities for international tourists, with gardens attracting around half a million visitors a year since 2006.

Return on investment

Many botanic gardens are paying their way. Around 31% of visitors now spend money when they visit a botanic garden. Botanic gardens add to local economies. They provide a return on investment by attracting visitors who spend time and money in the local area. For example, an economic impact assessment of Hamilton Gardens in New Zealand found that for every $2 invested in the gardens, about $8.90 was added to the city’s economy. They also present unique opportunities for community partnerships and corporate sponsorships.

Employment, training and services

Gardens also add to the economy by providing horticultural and other services, training and employment. They create jobs and provide specialist training and skills development in areas ranging from horticulture to garden design, sustainability to scientific research, and plant conservation to public education. Gardens also provide services and employment in their local region, ranging from biodiversity conservation and scientific research to public education and awareness to plant nurseries, onsite shops and cafes. Services that extend beyond the garden gates include plant identification, pest diagnosis, weed research, education and training, ornamental and commercial horticulture, landscaping, master planning and horticultural advice

There is also economic value in conservation and sustainability. Healthy communities also support healthy economies. Botanic gardens are active, vital resources that contribute to both these outcomes.



Guidelines on adapting the fact sheets

Add your logo—If you want to add your garden’s logo, it is recommended that you paste it in on the right hand side, below the green banner at the top. If you right click on your logo, select ‘Format picture > Text wrapping > Square’ you will be able to drag the logo to the right position at the side and the first few rows of text will fit around it.

Create your own fact sheets—The toolkit includes a blank Word fact sheet template for you to create your own fact sheet. Alternatively you can open one of the provided fact sheets in Word and ‘Save as’ your new file name before editing the text.

Keep to one page—The fact sheets are designed to be one-page only. If changing the text, it is best to limit it to a single page.

If you get ‘stuck’ in the header/footer—If you double left click in the header or footer and find that double clicking in the text section does not exit the header/footer, you can select the ‘View’ tab and left click on ‘Print layout’. This should take you back to the main text part of the page and enable editing. Alternatively, you can go do the ‘Design’ tab and select ‘Close header and footer’.

7. Core editorial The following core editorial is a generic article that can be a basis for a range of different tailored articles explaining the value of your garden. You can adapt and personalise this article with local, topical information and quotes. For example, you may adapt this into an article describing a new garden feature, exhibition or special event, announcing a milestone (e.g. 100, 000 th visitor) or celebrating an anniversary, telling a human interest/achievement story, highlighting a particular plant, area or development in your garden, or promoting seasonal gardening and sustainability information. The text for the core editorial includes prompts highlighted in yellow to help you personalise and add local content.

Text for core editorial about the value of botanic gardens

The precious community asset on our doorstep

Local content guideline: If you have a strong local story to tell, begin with a specific quote or fact to lead into your story. Then you can pick and chose from the core editorial text below for the middle section of your article.

‘The best place to be in the world!’

‘It has left wonderful memories of warm summer days spent in the gardens. Thank you all so much for being so welcoming, a highlight of our trip to Oz!’

‘Extra strong feeling, fantastic garden, you're doing a great job—helpful for the soul’

‘Gateway to heaven!!!’

Local content guideline: You could replace these quotes with some from your own garden.



Visitor comments like these reveal just how much people value botanic gardens. These places of natural beauty attract millions of visitors every year. [Insert your garden name] is no exception.

‘Last year, more than [insert your visitor figures] visitors come to [insert your garden name],’ said [insert your name and title].

Botanic gardens engage communities—inspiring, informing and connecting people with each other and with the environment.

‘As a place to catch up with family or friends, get some exercise, come along to an event, learn more about plants and horticulture, or just take a little time out and quietly appreciate nature, [insert your garden name] contributes to our general wellbeing and health. I love the fact that our garden brings our community together and that it creates memories and links generations,’ said [insert your name].

Local content guideline: Add examples of specific community events or involvement in your garden.

As well as providing social benefits, botanic gardens have an important environmental role in conservation. Many help to safeguard plant diversity, in particular by maintaining plants away from their natural habitat (ex situ conservation). This is an especially valuable role in regional areas, where ex situ conservation work links in with other local land care and natural resource management initiatives, creating strong centres for regional conservation.

Local content guideline: Add examples of specific conservation activities at your garden.

Often gardens also provide important habitats for local birds and native animals.

‘Botanic gardens are increasingly becoming leaders in science, cultural heritage and community education—sowing the seeds for a greener, more sustainable future. We have also begun taken on a more active role in educating about the natural world and the problems it faces, in particular, climate change.

‘Botanic gardens are so many things to so many people—they are precious community assets that improve the quality of our lives,’ said [insert your name].

Local content guideline: Depending on the purpose of the article, you may want to recap the main point or add details about your garden.



8. Stakeholder questions and checklist templateYou may find the following questions and checklist template useful to identify and further prioritise your stakeholders (another word for target audiences).

Questions to ask about each stakeholder

How do we communicate with this stakeholder?

Is communication two-way i.e. do we invite, listen and respond to their feedback?

Who is responsible for the relationship?

How are we addressing their issues or concerns?

Do we have major conflicts with this stakeholder on any issues?

If so, how are we addressing this?

Stakeholder checklist template

Stakeholder typeSee possible examples below

StakeholdersWho are your stakeholders/audiences?

Issues What are their key issues or concerns?

Level of influenceIs it high, medium or low?

Level of engagementDo you want to inform, consult, or involve them?

ActivitiesHow are you going to communicate/ engage with them?

TimingWhen are you going to do this?

Decision makers

Partners

Education reps

Volunteers andFriends

Internal (staff)

End users

Government reps

Special interest

Other



9. Tips for persuasive writing Whether you are developing a brochure or website, a speech or letter…these tips can help you develop persuasive communication materials.

Write for your audience, not yourself—Rather than simply listing what you do, explain how this benefits your audience. Knowing who your audience is and what they want helps you to focus on what is useful information for them.

Be clear about the purpose of your material—What response do you want? For example, do you want people to visit, provide funding, get involved? Knowing what you want to achieve will help you decide what to say and how to say it.

Be personal and engaging—Speak directly to your audience. They are more likely to respond to material that is personal, friendly and tailored to their needs rather than stiff, formal and impersonal. Reading your drafts out loud is a good way to make sure it is clear and engaging.

Keep your language simple and straightforward—You can make your material engaging and easy-to-read by keeping the language simple and avoiding in-house jargon. It’s also good to use active, positive language.

Use short stories—You can personalise your material by telling short stories that relate to your garden’s work, and the links to the community and local issues.

Use your key messages—Key messages are designed to encapsulate what your audiences need to know about you so use them across the full range of communication materials.

Be brief—Your target audiences are busy too, so keep your communication focused and to the point. Give people enough information so they want to find out more rather than trying to include too much detail.

Use testimonials—If your audiences have said positive things about your garden, ask if you can quote them in your communication materials. Quoting other people about the value your garden adds tends to be more convincing than you saying it yourself.

Edit and proof read everything—Take the time to edit to smooth out your writing and delete jargon and unnecessary detail. Editing and proof reading are also important to pick up spelling errors or other inaccuracies. Mistakes are embarrassing and can leave the impression that your quality control is not up to scratch. A good test is to get someone who has never read the material before to check it for you. As well as picking up mistakes, they can also let you know if it makes sense and flows easily.

Don’t date things unnecessarily—Try to avoid specific references that will date your material (unless you’re developing something to promote a particular event). This will give your material a longer life before you need to update it.

Include your contact details—Provide at your phone number and website address (if you have one) so that people can contact you easily.

Use graphics and images—Add colour and life with images and graphics that are clear, good quality and relevant.

Make it look professional—It is worth having your material designed professionally, especially if it is going to be in use for a while.



10. Tips for dealing with the media Getting free publicity can be a very effective way of raising awareness and promoting your garden. This checklist can help you when dealing with the media.

Be clear about your reason for contacting the media—Journalists are often working on several different stories at once and under pressure to meet deadlines. Be clear about why you are contacting them. For example, are you inviting them to attend an event? Are you letting them know about a possible news story related to your garden? The reason needs to be newsworthy from the media’s point of view (see next point).

Identify a newsworthy angle—Journalists sift through hundreds of media releases and other information every day. Something that is a big deal for you doesn’t necessarily have a lot of news value for them. Try to put yourself in the media’s shoes when deciding if you have a newsworthy story to tell.

The media are interested in stories that will grab their readers’ or viewers’ attention. Make your story relevant to the audience to help attract coverage. This often means highlighting something that is new, unusual, quirky or funny, has a strong local angle, some human interest or controversy.

For example:

- an announcement, anniversary or milestone

- a launch of something new (with an angle that explains the interest or benefits for the audience such as the advantages to local tourism or the local environment, why it is good for the area’s economy etc.)

- a good news story about your staff or employees

- your comments on a current issue that relates to the work of your garden in some way.

Know your target audience—Knowing who you want to reach helps you work out which media is the best option. For example, if you want to reach keen gardeners, consider the local radio gardening or lifestyle program, or the gardening page or environmental reporter at your local newspaper.

Make sure you can meet the media’s needs—Understanding and catering for the different needs of different media can help you to achieve coverage. For example:

- newspapers and magazines need good pictures and someone to interview or quote (called ‘talent’)

- radio needs talent who can speak with confidence and enthusiasm

- television needs talent who can speak with confidence and enthusiasm and who also looks presentable. The other major consideration for television is whether you can provide interesting images or ‘vision’ to illustrate your story. This means allowing the TV crew to film something that is interesting visually as well as relevant to your story

- online media is more easily and frequently updated, often runs shorter stories and sometimes also includes quotes and pictures.



Draw up your contact list—Be as specific as possible. For example, if you are going to approach the radio’s gardening program, find out who the producer is and ask to be put through to them or the presenter (and call well before they go on air). Addressing information direct to a particular journalist who covers similar issues means it is more likely to reach the right person.

Get to the point quickly—Before you contact any media, make sure you are clear about the reason for your call and have your 30 second ‘pitch’ worked out. When they answer your call, identify yourself and ask if they have a minute to take your call.

Don’t be a pest—Find out what you can about the schedule of the media you intend to contact and avoid calling when they are up against a deadline. For example, it is best not to call a regional weekly newspaper the day before they publish or a radio presenter or producer just before they go to air.

Act quickly and be responsive—Return journalists’ calls promptly and if you need to get back to them, ask when their deadline is and get back to them in time.

Be well prepared—If you are inviting media interest, journalists will expect you to know your topic. Having your key messages well prepared and rehearsed gives you added confidence when dealing with the media. Spending a little time in advance thinking through possible questions and answers is also worthwhile.

Encapsulate your story in a media release—This helps you to focus as well as providing the media with a handy summary of what your story is about. Consider these tips for preparing a media release:

- include the words MEDIA RELEASE at the top

- include your branding (e.g. your logo and garden name)

- include the date and the words ‘for immediate release’, or if you don’t want something covered until after a certain time put ‘embargoed until [date and time]’

- write a punchy headline that captures the essence of your story (don’t try to be too clever or tricky—if the media cannot immediately understand what your story is they are likely to discard your media release straight away)

- cover the key points in your first sentence, explaining what, who, when, where (follow up with why and how)

- keep it simple and to the point—avoid jargon and complex sentences

- keep it to one page

- include a quote or two for colour and emotion from yourself or someone else relevant to the story who is prepared to be interviewed by interested media

- if there is an event or launch, provide full details about when and where

- provide a name and contact details for someone who can respond to media enquiries—include a mobile number and an email address and make sure this person is prepared and available as soon as the media release has gone out (including after hours)

- if you are emailing the media release, paste the text into the body of the email as well as sending an attachment and use your headline in the subject line.

Be honest—Always be honest, and don’t be tempted to exaggerate or lie. If you are caught out, your credibility is damaged.



Treat everything as ‘on the record’—Be careful about making any throw-away remarks. Treat everything you say to a journalist as if it is on the record and regard every microphone as ‘live’.

Consider media training—If you are likely to be exposed to a reasonable amount of media interest, it could be worth arranging some media training for your key spokespeople.

Remember there are no guarantees—Once you have provided information to the media, accept you have very little control over how, or even if, it is reported. Being really clear about your messages will help you to avoid providing confusing information that can be misreported.

11. Tips for lobbying Here are some basic tips for effective lobbying:

Understand the system—Make it your business to know about all the decision makers, politicians and other authorities who can affect your garden. Understand who they are and how they operate.

Find out who actually makes the decisions—Your efforts are more likely to hit the mark if you know who is truly influential and speak to them in the context of what matters to them (tourism, local environmental issues, heritage, votes, social inclusion etc.).

Be clear about what you want—Before you approach anyone, be specific about your goals and the outcome you want.

Use your professional network—Enlist the support of BGANZ (for example, through a letter of support for your garden’s work) and other professional or industry bodies that have common goals and can lend weight to your efforts.

Develop relationships—By establishing an ongoing relationship with the people that matter, you are more likely to gain access when you need it. Remember, a relationship is two-way, which means listening as well as talking. It is also about being genuinely helpful by providing timely, accurate briefings, and regular updates on information of interest to policy and decision makers.

Be respectful, honest and transparent—Don’t by pushy or aggressive. Do be up-front about your purpose and goals and be prepared to provide whatever information is necessary to back up your argument. Thank people for their time and follow up on any agreed actions.

Keep on top of relevant issues—Monitor political and other developments so that you understand the context and motivations of the people you are dealing with. This enables you to identify challenges, objections, issues or changes that may present opportunities for you.

Consider your options—writing a letter, making a phone call, requesting a meeting, sending an email, providing a briefing pack, hosting an event, generating public and media interest...these are all potential ways of lobbying.



NOTES



ATTACHMENT A: SITUATION ASSESSMENT/ BACKGROUND INFORMATIONThe following is a summary of the research and information on which this toolkit is based. It provides more detailed background information that may be of interest as an extra resource for users of the toolkit.

Communication environment for botanic gardensStrengthsCommunication strengths include the fact that garden staff have: genuine passion and enthusiasm for the work they do

first-hand knowledge about the role, function and multiple values of gardens

Other strengths include the:

popularity of gardens as a destination community goodwill and general public appreciation for gardens

strong grassroots support from Friends groups and volunteers wide range of achievements, case studies, activities, developments and stories that can be

highlighted range of engaging images that can be used to illustrate various points

general media interest in issues relating to climate change, sustainability, local community and local human interest stories

professional support network via BGANZ.

Challenges Communication challenges identified by gardens include: lack of time (during and after business hours) for profile raising activities

lack of resources and expertise in government, media and corporate sector liaison limited understanding or appreciation among key target audiences about the role, function and

multiple values of gardens lack of evidence to demonstrate the value of gardens and the return on investment

increased pressure on operating budgets tough competition for funding against higher local priorities such as health or transport

limited opportunities to access decision-makers (sometimes a long distance away) for personal presentations, tours etc.

the need to ‘start from scratch’ educating decision-makers following a change of government at a local level

lack of understanding of the level of skill or scientific nature of the work of gardens natural disinclination among many garden staff regarding ‘talking themselves up’.15

15 BGANZ representative interviews to inform development of the communication toolkit, April 2011



Background information on botanic gardens

History and purpose

For four centuries, botanic gardens have led research and generated much of our knowledge about plants and how to grow them (botany and horticulture).16

The role of botanic gardens has changed throughout history. Many began as medicinal gardens for studying and cultivating plants with healing properties, and moved through phases including as places for more comprehensive plant research and colonial expansion, through to municipal gardens for public enjoyment, as well as specialist and sanctuary gardens. Botanic gardens are continually adapting to meet the needs and help solve the challenges of their societies.17

Today, there are some 2200 botanic gardens in more than 150 countries worldwide. As well as key players in plant conservation and public education, botanic gardens also have an increasingly important role in the response to climate change (see Climate change below).

Many botanic gardens are involved in threatened species recovery projects, including propagation, seed collection and studies, seed bank projects, re-introduction biology and strategies to reduce the likelihood of species extinction.18

Other activities includes monitoring and assessment studies, community greening and conservation projects, development of herbaria, cultivation of diverse plants, a range of scientific and research projects relating to plants, city planning and land use, management of native and other landscapes, environmental and sustainability education, advice and information.19

‘[Botanic gardens] could be absolutely vital to the survival of the planet as they are perfectly placed to help move species around and help ecosystems to adapt to new climates in different regions.’20

Range

In Australia there are eight major botanic gardens in the state and capital cities, and more than 150 regional botanic gardens ranging in size from small and local to larger regional gardens.21

These range from the oldest scientific institution in Australia, Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens, to much newer gardens such as the Australian Arid Lands Botanic Garden established in 1996 in Port Augusta, north of Adelaide. Another recent development is the National Arboretum in Canberra, as a response to the 2003 bushfires, which is to be officially opened in 2013.

In Australian botanic gardens, living collections usually include some Australian flora that relates to the geographical area. Australia’s capital city botanic gardens contain a combined total of about 24,000 Australian plant species.

16 CHABG, Role of Australia’s Botanic Gardens in Adapting to Climate Change17 Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI), Resource Centre, <http://www.bgci.org/resources/1574/>, viewed 29 March 201118 CHABG, Role of Australia’s Botanic Gardens in Adapting to Climate Change19 V Kuzevanov & S Sizykh, ‘Botanic Gardens Resources: Tangible and Intangible Aspects of Linking Biodiversity and Human Well-Being’20 BGCI, Resource Centre21 CHABG, Role of Australia’s Botanic Gardens in Adapting to Climate Change


http://www.bgci.org/resources/1574/


In New Zealand almost every city and town has at least one botanic garden. Like most overseas botanic gardens, New Zealand’s botanic gardens were mainly set up by governments to trial plants with potential economic benefits and to study exotic and native plants.

In the mid to late 1800s a key function was to cultivate imported seeds of exotic trees and distribute hundreds of thousands of plants to schools, hospitals and farmers for use as shelter, ornamentation, and orchard or forestry stock. The focus then changed to ornamental and recreational purposes as scientific and economic functions were taken over by government departments.

Towards the end of the 20th century New Zealand’s botanic gardens began to take a greater educational role by offering plant and gardening seminars to the public, and providing information about their plant collections.

In recent years some have assumed responsibility for the conservation of regionally threatened and uncommon plants.22

Resources

The level of motivation and enthusiasm among people working in gardens is consistently high. However, garden size, funding, capacity and staff resources vary widely.

Regional gardens in particular have limited staff performing multiple roles.23

Most gardens also rely on the support of volunteers and Friends organisations (the sector’s workforce in Australia in 2000 comprised 61.4% volunteers and 38.6% employees24).

Income and economic impact

The majority of income for most gardens comes from government.

However, 46.2% of respondents in the BGANZ member survey in 2009 also reported self-generated funding, 25.6% received funding from sponsors and 23.1% reported other funding sources including grants, donations, and contributions from Friends.25

A 2008 Economic Impact Assessment for Hamilton Gardens in New Zealand concluded that from a Total Output of approximately $22 million, the Total Value Added to the Hamilton City economy by Hamilton Gardens was $8.9 million.

Given the annual cost of Hamilton Gardens at the time was approximately $2 million, this means for every $2 invested in the gardens about $8.90 has been added to the city’s economy.26

22 TeAra.govt.nz The Encyclopedia of New Zealand, <www.teara.govt.nz/en/public-gardens/1>, viewed 16 May 201123 BGANZ representative interviews to inform development of the communication toolkit, April 201124 Australian Bureau of Statistics, Botanic Gardens, Australia, 1999–2000 (cat. no. 8563.0)25 BGANZ member survey, 200926 BGANZ, The Botanic Garden newsletter, issue 29 March 2011


http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/public-gardens/1


Australian sector census results (2000)

The following summarises the findings from a 1999–2000 Australian Bureau of Statistics census of employing organisations engaged in operating botanic gardens.27 While this information is now a decade old, it is the most comprehensive statistical information available about the sector in Australia and provides some useful data about economic value.

Number and size

In 1999–2000, there were 72 employing organisations operating botanic gardens in Australia. These organisations operated 123 locations comprising 74 which were mainly botanic gardens, 24 which were arboreta, and 25 which were herbaria. The operation of these organisations covered an area of 3,664 hectares, which comprised 3,050 hectares of botanic gardens and 614 hectares of arboreta.

Expenses and employment

At the end of June 2000, there were 1,250 employees and 1,991 volunteers working for botanic gardens.

Most employees were full-time (78%). The majority were grouped in curatorial, horticultural and gardening (692), followed by managerial and administrative (186), educational, public relations and retail sales (183), and specialists and research (158).

Volunteers were guides or information officers (665), horticultural (467), scientific or curatorial assistants (292), with 567 listed as ‘other’.

During 1999–2000, botanic gardens had total expenses of $82 million.

Dependence on government funding declined from 86% of all income in 1997 to 80% in 2000.28

Species and specimens

At the end of June 2000, there were 7.4 million plant specimens in botanic gardens, of which 1.3 million were living plants, and 6.1 million were preserved plants. (The six largest botanic gardens accounted for 34% of living plants and 80% of the preserved plant specimens.) There was an average of 1,913 living plant species and 3,724 preserved plant species in botanic gardens. (The six largest botanic gardens had an average of 8,632 living plant species and 38,268 preserved plant species.)

Visitor numbers

Australia

Botanic gardens are among the most popular cultural venues for Australians, ahead of art galleries, museums and libraries. More than one third (35%) of the population aged 15 years and over— 6.2 million people—visited botanic gardens in 2009–10.

This is close to attendance at zoos and aquariums (37%), which come second only to cinemas (67 per cent).29

27 Australian Bureau of Statistics, Botanic Gardens, Australia, 1999–2000 (cat. no. 8563.0), <www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/mf/8563.0/>, viewed 25 March 201128 The BGANZ member survey 2009 indicates that this may have further declined, with 46.2% of respondents reporting self-generated funding sources29 Australian Bureau of Statistics, Attendance at Selected Cultural Venues and Events, Australia 2009–10


http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/mf/8563.0/


This was a statistically significant increase from the 34% (5.4 million) who visited botanic gardens in 2005–06. Of those who visited botanic gardens, 37% visited once, 26% visited twice and 14% visited at least six times.30

Breakdown by states and territories 31

Number (‘000)NSW Vic. Qld SA WA Tas. NT ACT National1,801.8 1,768.1 1,248.0 447.5 552.7 140.3 55.0 110.6 6153.8

Attendance rate (%)NSW Vic. Qld SA WA Tas. NT ACT National31.5% 40% 36% 36.6% 31.4% 35.2% 43.1% 39% 35.2%

Breakdown by region 32

Number (‘000)State capital cities Balance of state/territory Total4110.1 2043.8 6153.8

Attendance rate (%)State capital cities Balance of state/territory Total37.6 31.3 35.2

Gardens are also popular venues for domestic and international tourists in Australia. In 2008, 18% of all domestic overnight trips in Australia included a nature activity such as visiting a national park, botanic garden or wildlife park, bushwalking, or whale watching scuba diving or snorkelling. A total of 65% of international tourists also participated in one or more of these activities. Nature-based visitors stay almost twice as long as other international visitors and spend 80% of international visitor dollars.33

New Zealand

In New Zealand, visiting gardens is among the top activities and attractions for international tourists, with around half a million visitors a year since 2006. In the year to March 2011, gardens attracted 418,092 visits (down from 529,013 the previous year; however, numbers for almost all activities and attractions were down in 2010–11).34

Botanic gardens are also popular destinations for New Zealand families, especially those with young children.35 New Zealand adults nominated walking and gardening as their top two most popular recreation/sporting activities (61.4% and 43.2% respectively) in 2008.36

30 Australian Bureau of Statistics, Perspectives on Culture, March 2011 (cat. no. 4172.0.55.001), <www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/Products/4172.0.55.001~March+2011~Main+Features~Zoological+park+and+Botanic+garden+Attendance?OpenDocument>, viewed 25 March 2011 31 Australian Bureau of Statistics, Attendance at Selected Cultural Venues and Events, Australia 2009–1032 Ibid33 Australian Bureau of Statistics, Year Book Australia 2009–1034 Ministry of Economic Development, International Visitor Survey data35 A Reis, A Thompson, B Lovelock & M Boyes (2010), Planting the seed 36 Sport and Recreation New Zealand (2008) Sport, Recreation and Physical Activity Participation Among New Zealand Adults, Key Results of the 2007–08 Active NZ Survey, Wellington, SPARC, <www.activenzsurvey.org.nz/Documents/active-nz-survey-2007-08.pdf>, viewed on 18 May 2011


http://www.activenzsurvey.org.nz/Documents/active-nz-survey-2007-08.pdf

http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/Products/4172.0.55.001~March+2011~Main+Features~Zoological+park+and+Botanic+garden+Attendance?OpenDocument

http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/Products/4172.0.55.001~March+2011~Main+Features~Zoological+park+and+Botanic+garden+Attendance?OpenDocument


Visitor experience and feedback

The 2011 BGANZ member survey found that the majority of gardens (97%) receive either very positive or positive visitor feedback (with just one respondent reporting no feedback).37

These results align with the study of perceptions of service quality in eight Australian and New Zealand which found that on average 96% of visitors were satisfied with their garden visit with 59% (on average) ‘very satisfied’.

A total of 95% of visitors said they would recommend the garden, with 61% (on average) willing to ‘very strongly recommend’ the garden to others. On average, 90% of visitors intend to revisit the gardens. Of these, 75% (on average) indicated they were ‘definitely’ likely to revisit.38

In a study of visitors’ perceptions of service quality in four regional botanic gardens in Australia the attributes rated most highly were the feeling of safety when visiting the gardens, a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere, pleasing physical layout, friendly and responsive staff, and that the garden showcases a wide diversity of plants.39

Reasons for visiting

Visitors come to gardens for many reasons including to enjoy the garden scenery, immerse themselves in the ambient environment, experience the spiritual and restorative qualities of gardens, enjoy a pleasant day out, gain gardening information, play games, for recreation and social interaction, or to relax and read.40

In a study of perceptions of service quality in eight Australian and New Zealand botanic gardens, most visitors recorded their main activity as ‘view plants’, with ‘walk or exercise’, ‘relax/read’ and ‘family outing’ also frequently nominated.41

BGANZ member survey to inform this toolkit (2011)

BGANZ members were invited to participate in a short online survey in April 2011, to help inform the development of this toolkit.

Common themes

When asked about the most important and valuable things that gardens do, responses mainly centred on social and environmental themes, with a limited number of responses citing economic value.42

37 BGANZ member survey to inform development of the communication toolkit, April 201138 Dr G Crilley & Dr E Moskwa, Perceptions of Service Quality at 8 Australian and New Zealand Botanic Gardens, 2008, Centre for Tourism and Leisure Management, University of South Australia, May 200939 Dr G Crilley et al, Identifying Visitor Service Quality in Australian Regional Botanic Gardens, Annals of leisure research, Australian and New Zealand Association for Leisure Studies Association, Lindfield, NSW pp. 476–469, 201040 Ibid41 Dr G Crilley & Dr E Moskwa, Perceptions of Service Quality at 8 Australian and New Zealand Botanic Gardens, 2008 42 BGANZ member survey and representative interviews to inform development of the communication toolkit, April 2011



Common social themes were:

connecting people with nature/plants—reintroducing people to the environment

engaging the community

connecting friends and families (i.e. as gathering places/venues)

creating family/intergenerational memories

portraying local histories, heritage and cultures

providing a welcoming and valued setting for passive recreation, leisure, relaxation and enjoyment

providing natural, outdoor play spaces for children

creating beautiful landscapes

providing a venue for art/sculpture/other cultural activities

contributing to community wellbeing and health (physical and mental).

Common environmental themes were:

encouraging a love and understanding of plants

providing information and supporting interest in horticulture, landscaping and gardening appropriate for local conditions

educating and communicating about the value of plant life/importance of plants and biodiversity

promoting understanding about the critical role plants play in our everyday lives

providing a resource, training facility and outdoor classroom for universities, schools and other groups

showcasing living collections/providing living museums of important plants

promoting sustainability and demonstrating/leading by example sustainable gardening and living

providing the ‘lungs’ of the city (in urban locations)

providing advice and contributing to planning and planting beyond the garden walls

researching, growing, conserving, preserving and enhancing botanic species including rare and threatened flora.

Common economic themes were:

providing a significant local/regional visitor attraction

providing activities for family entertainment and volunteers

displaying plants in an environment that allows a range of public uses

providing a venue for the local community and visitors to relax and enjoy the gardens

providing employment and local businesses opportunities (e.g. cafes, nurseries and shops)

providing horticulture-related products and services.



Activites

As shown below, most gardens are involved in a range of activities, with nearly all (90.3%) providing guided tours and special/community events. The majority also provide Friends activities (83.9%), host private functions (71%) and are involved in conservaton activities (71%). Around two-thirds provide education activities (67.7%) while around one-third conduct research (35.5%). Just under half (45.2%) have exhibitions and a quarter (25%) have sponsorship programs.43’

Actvities currently provided by gardens (BGANZ member survey 2011)

Target audiences for commmunication about values and activities

Gardens communicate with a range of audiences about their values and activities.

Most commonly this involves communicating with general visitors to the garden (93.5%), councillors/local government representatives (90.3%), Friends (80.6%), senior managers (74.2%), local clubs (71%), potential community-based partners (71%), local education representatives (61.3%) and potential corporate sponsors (51.6%).

Less common is communication with local MPs (45.2%), state government representatives (38.7%) and federal government representatives (16.1%).44

43 BGANZ member survey to inform development of the communication toolkit, April 201144 Ibid



Audiences gardens currently communicate with (BGANZ member survey 2011)

‘Other responses’ identified:

industry professionals

horticulture students/students and specific faculty personnel

horticulture industry representatives

local media (radio, TV and newspapers)

local environment groups

retirement communities and other aged care groups

church and community organisations

garden clubs

garden festival organisers

local Indigenous representatives

special needs groups

museums/art institutions

tourism industry/tour group operators.



Biodiversity—the global context

What is it?

Biological diversity—or biodiversity as it has become known—is defined in the Global Convention of Biological Diversity as:

‘the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems’ (CBD 1992: Article 2).45

In simpler terms it is ‘the variety of life on earth and the natural patterns it forms—the “web of life”, of which humans are part’ (CBD 2000).46

Why is it important?

Biodiversity is the basis of all life on earth, but its decline and loss continues to be overshadowed by the climate change debate. This is despite the fact that scientists think we may have already overstepped the ‘planetary boundary’ of a ‘safe human operating space’ for biodiversity (Rockstrom et al. 2009, CBD 2010).47

The importance of biodiversity is that it underpins the functioning of ecosystems, which in turn provide a wide range of goods and services critical for human survival and wellbeing, including food, water, fibres, medicines, pollination of crops, filtration of pollutants, protection from natural disasters as well as recreational, aesthetic, cultural and spiritual opportunities and values (CBD 2010). Biodiversity and ecosystem services are also the basis of human livelihoods and the economy of our society: it was estimated that biodiversity and ecosystem services contributed value of at least US$33 trillion per annum to the global economy in 1997, which was 1.8 times the then-current global GNP (Costanza et al. 1997).48

As biodiversity continues to decline, biodiversity conservation is becoming a topic of increasing significance to us all.

The global outlook

The CBD Global Biodiversity Outlook (CBD 2010) estimates that current global biodiversity at a species level ranges widely from 5–15 million species, with lack of knowledge and certainty still a significant issue. It paints a very gloomy picture of continuing global biodiversity decline:

‘species at risk of extinction are on average moving closer to extinction and 25% of plants are currently considered threatened with extinction;

the abundance of vertebrate species continues to decline with abundance reducing by 33% between 1970 and 2006;

45 CBD (Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity) 1992, Convention on Biological Diversity, <www.cbd.int/convention/articles.shtml?a=cbd-02>.46 CBD 2000, Sustaining life on Earth: how the convention promotes nature and human wellbeing, Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Gland Switzerland.47 CBD 2010, Global Biodiversity Outlook 3: 94pp, Montreal.

48 Costanza, R. et al, 1997, ‘The value of the world’s ecosystem services and natural capital’, Nature, Vol. 387: 253–260.


http://www.cbd.int/convention/articles.shtml?a=cbd-02


natural habitats continue to decline in extent and integrity;

fragmentation and degradation of forests, rivers and other ecosystems has resulted in loss of ecosystem services;

crop and livestock genetic diversity continues to decline; and

five principal pressures (habitat change, pollution, invasive species, over-exploitation and climate change) are either being maintained or are increasing.’

The Outlook concludes that without significant action over the next few decades it is doubtful that the relatively stable conditions which human civilisation has enjoyed over the last 10 000 years will be maintained beyond the end of this century (CBD 2010).

What can botanic gardens and arboreta do?

Surveys around the world have shown that there are many people who do not know what biodiversity is, why it is important, or what they can do to address biodiversity decline at a local level and make our existence more sustainable. The high visitation to botanic gardens and arboreta in Australia and New Zealand and their presence in towns large and small gives them a very special opportunity to contribute to the future of the planet: they are perfectly placed to increase public awareness of the importance of biodiversity and help people to understand what they can do about biodiversity decline in their local community.

Biodiversity in Australia

The following is an edited extract from the Australian Bureau of Statistics Year Book Australia 2009-10:

‘Australia is one of the most biodiverse countries in the world.

Biodiversity is valued by people for many reasons. It contributes to the emotional and spiritual wellbeing of individuals and communities; it is the life-blood that sustains rural and coastal communities; and it is fundamental to Indigenous people, whose traditions and cultures are inextricably tied to the Australian landscape and its biodiversity.

The natural environment has recreational value for many Australians: most people like nature and like to experience it. Visitors to Australia are also attracted to the natural environment.

The biodiversity of the natural environment also provides a wide range of ecosystem goods and services that are integral to life. Resources that sustain humans, such as food, medicines, timber, fuels and genetic materials, are all provided by a biodiverse natural environment. Biodiversity provides the oxygen we breathe and purifies the water that we drink. It builds and protects soils and stores and cycles nutrients essential for food production. It controls pests and breaks down pollutants in the environment. It also aids recovery from unpredictable natural or catastrophic events and helps to maintain a stable climate. These goods and services, whether gained directly or indirectly from biodiversity, represent the fundamental building blocks of human society.

In economic terms, the rivers, wetlands and flood plains of the Murray-Darling Basin are thought to provide $187 billion in ecosystem services annually. Biodiversity related industries also contribute significantly and directly to the Australian economy: it has been estimated that, per year, Australia’s bushfood production is worth $100 million; and wildflower exports worth $30 million.

Australia’s climate is geographically very variable compared to other countries, resulting in ecosystems ranging from deserts to tropical rainforests.



Australia has experienced the largest documented decline in biodiversity of any continent over the past 200 years. Under the EPBC Act, more than 50 species of Australian animals have been listed as extinct and the number of known extinct Australian plants is 48. Australia’s rate of species decline continues to be among the world’s highest, and is the highest in the OECD. The list of nationally threatened species continues to grow in Australia, with 426 animal species (including presumed extinctions) and 1,33949 plant species listed as threatened under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act).

Climate change has emerged as one of the most significant threats to biodiversity in Australia. Severe impacts are expected for ecological communities across Australia including many important and iconic Australian landscapes, such as the Great Barrier Reef, the Australian Alps, many major river systems, and rangelands. The interaction of climate change with other threats is also important, as impacts reduce the resilience of species and their abilities to adapt to a changing climate.

There are, however, many opportunities that a biodiverse landscape presents for mitigating climate change.

The conservation of Australia’s biodiversity is a shared responsibility across all parts of the community. It involves the protection of Australia’s valuable natural assets, ensuring that these assets do not decline in the future, and also encompasses the restoration of assets and services that have undergone past decline. Many groups are involved in the protection of Australia’s biodiversity, including governments at all levels, non-governmental organisations, community groups and individuals. A range of activities are undertaken in order to protect, conserve and restore biodiversity, including establishing and managing reserves, investing in on-ground action, regulating development, and using market-based approaches to create incentives to protect biodiversity.

Despite the decline that has occurred in Australia’s biodiversity, the continent still holds one of the most rich and diverse collections of flora and fauna in the world.

Australians enjoy the many benefits of a biodiverse natural environment. Whether it be through tourism and recreation activities (such as visiting a national park, bushwalking, recreational fishing, and snorkelling), through the environmental resources and services which biodiversity provides (such as food, medicine, timber and water purification), or through a healthier surrounding environment (such as the bushland surrounding homes and the parklands in our cities), biodiversity is important to many Australians. These important resources and services that biodiversity brings to Australians makes it an asset worthy of our respect and protection.’

Climate change and botanic gardens

The Australian Government’s Climate Commission has warned that this is the critical decade for action on climate change.

The Commission’s latest report, The Critical Decade, states that the global climate is changing and humanity is almost surely the primary cause. The risks have never been clearer and the case for action has never been more urgent.

The report says Australia is already seeing the social, economic and environmental impacts of the rapid warming of the Earth’s surface.

49 Latest figure is 1,342 (see Key messages, message no. 8 about environmental values, page 11 of this toolkit)



Decisions we make from now until 2020 will determine the severity of climate change our children and grandchildren experience. Without strong and rapid action there is significant risk that climate change will undermine our society’s prosperity, health, stability and way of life. 50

Botanic gardens can play an important role in educating about and adapting to climate change.

The following update on progress with the National Strategy and Action Plan for the Role of Australia’s Botanic Gardens in Adapting to Climate Change is from The Botanic Garden newsletter, issue 29 March 2011.51

‘Climate change is a major new challenge for botanic gardens, as it is for many other communities and institutions around Australia. Early signs suggest climate change is having a significant effect on biodiversity and plants; the survival of many species will depend on their ability to adapt to change.

Australia’s botanic gardens have an important role to play in responding to climate change: as centres for botanical and horticultural research, providing knowledge and educating the community, and as important sites for ex situ conservation. The National Strategy and Action Plan for the Role of Australia’s Botanic Gardens in Adapting to Climate Change (2008) provides a framework for Australia’s botanic gardens to respond to the challenge of climate change. This framework is based on: coordinating a national safety net for Australia’s plant species through ex situ conservation; delivering integrated and easily accessible information about Australian plant species; establishing a long-term monitoring program of plant responses to environmental change; increasing national community awareness of climate change and facilitating an effective response.

One outcome of the Action Plan was to develop key climate change messages for botanic gardens to use in school and community education programs. These are:

Plants are central to cycles of the planet.

People and plants will determine the future of climate change. Plants do, and people can, reduce the impact and adapt to climate change.

Botanic gardens are special places with an essential role in research, education and conservation. They provide a forum for communicating about the impacts of climate change on plants and biodiversity.’

50 Climate Commission The Critical Decade: key messages <http://climatecommission.govspace.gov.au/2011/05/23/the-critical-decade/>, viewed 23 May 201151 BGANZ, The Botanic Garden newsletter, issue 29 March 2011


http://climatecommission.govspace.gov.au/2011/05/23/the-critical-decade/

Draft for comment 25 May 2011 - BGANZ · Web viewPlants are a vital source of oxygen, food,...

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