In the UK and globally, the value of biodiversity is increasingly important in human lives and livelihoods. RBG Kew’s scientific mission as a world-leading biodiversity institute is to stop biodiversity loss and develop nature-based solutions to societal challenges through its science strategy. Nature Unlocked is a Kew’s UK focused interdisciplinary conservation research programme based at Kew Wakehurst. The programme brings together Kew scientists with academic and industry partners to address the challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss in the UK. Working within Wakehurst’s diverse, multi-habitat landscape, the programme uses a living laboratory approach to co-design and test innovative scientific solutions. Central to this is the Wakehurst Ecosystem Observatory, a long-term environmental monitoring network that enables the development and scaling of new methods and evidence on ecosystem services and ecological change over time. The team are also working with external partners to scale-up the approach developed at Wakehurst. Alongside research, Nature Unlocked actively engages visitors, members, policy makers, and land managers, translating science into practice to support nature recovery and climate resilience.

Building on a successful pilot phase, Nature Unlocked has recently launched a new strategy to embed science in the Wakehurst landscape and within the organisation more generally, and to build impactful partnerships to scale methods, protocols and evidence to regional and UK landscapes. This role will lead on building impactful external partnerships, in particular with government, as well as industry, communities and academia, to ensure scientific evidence translates into practice. This is an exciting time to be joining Kew, with an upcoming Science Strategy refresh and ambitious targets for Sustainability and Landscape Succession Planning considering climate change and biodiversity loss.

This role will play a central role in connecting Kew science with UK policy and corporate practice. Based at Kew Wakehurst, the role requires strong knowledge of UK environment policy, particularly addressing biodiversity loss, climate change, nature recovery and land use. The postholder will also translate scientific evidence into clear, compelling messages for government, industry and other external partners.