The University of Warsaw has secured more than PLN 510,000 under the European Funds for Mazovia 2021-2027 regional programme for the project “Botanic Garden of Diversity – a project to preserve regional diversity in the heart of a big city”. “The UW’s mission is comprehensive education and research excellence. Equally important is the University’s third mission, namely its impact and influence on society. This project will have precisely such tasks,” Prof. Ewa Krogulec, UW Vice-Rector said during the signing of the agreement.

The University of Warsaw has received PLN 510,000 for the implementation of the project “Botanic Garden of Diversity – a project to preserve regional diversity in the heart of a big city” as part of the regional programme European Funds for Mazovia 2021–2027. On 12th February, the agreement was signed by Prof. Ewa Krogulec, the UW Vice-Rector for Development, Prof. Marcin Zych, the Director of the University of Warsaw Botanic Garden, Anna Brzezińska, Member of the Board of the Mazovian Voivodeship, and Katarzyna Łęgiewicz, Councillor of the Mazovian Voivodeship Assembly.

“The University of Warsaw’s mission is comprehensive education and research excellence. Equally important is the University’s third mission, namely its impact and influence on society. This project will have precisely such tasks,” Prof. Ewa Krogulec, the UW Vice-Rector for Development said, adding: “The Botanic Garden is an extremely important unit of the University. It is a showpiece not only of the UW, but also of Warsaw, Mazovia and Poland. We are delighted that the project and the funding awarded under it will contribute to its further development.”

The project at the UW Botanic Garden will focus on the preservation of biodiversity of wild plants, but also of man-made varieties.

The European funds applied for by the University of Warsaw will be used for activities such as the renovation of pools with aquatic and wetland plants, the revalorisation of a fragment of the Lowland Flora of Poland collection with species and varieties of plants native to Mazovia, and the establishment of a flower meadow.

“The project responds to three challenges facing the University: research, teaching and openness to the public. At the UW Botanic Garden, we have been upholding the tradition of caring for native, Mazovian plants for 200 years. The implementation of the EU-funded project will enable us to strengthen our scientific and didactic activities, and will also provide a basis for a broad educational campaign for our guests from outside the University,” Prof. Marcin Zych, the Director of the UW Botanic Garden, emphasised.

The total value of the “Botanic Garden of Diversity” project is over PLN 1 million. In addition to the revitalisation works, the project will include an educational action entitled “Rodzime gatunki roślin blisko nas i dla nas” (ENG: “Native plant species close to us and for us”).