As the Arboretum Foundation and UW Botanic Gardens move towards consolidation in 2025, we are seeking an interpretive planning and public engagement consultant who can facilitate conversations with stakeholders and community members to explore and connect the narrative threads of visitor experience—both current and possible—across the full breadth of the Arboretum and Botanic Gardens.
Stakeholders include the staff and leadership of the Arboretum Foundation, UW Botanic Gardens, and Seattle Parks and Recreation. The consultant will also work with the Arboretum’s Tribal Advisory Committee and representatives from the Japanese-American community, Northwest Horticultural Society, and Seattle Garden Club. Community focus groups will include representatives from near neighborhoods, as well as Arboretum Foundation volunteers and donors.
The interpretative strategy will be a narrative overlay on the existing and future Arboretum and Botanic Gardens, including the yet-to-be-realized 28 acres near Montlake. It will not include schematic design, visitor management, or other detailed elements. Instead, it will focus on the themes, mediums and stories of the plants and people who share these spaces.
These conversations will inform strategic communications, branding, and working priorities for the Arboretum Foundation and Botanic Gardens as they move through an initial phase of consolidating operations, which will be followed by more rigorous strategic and interpretive planning. Desired outcomes from this initial process are focused on building stakeholder engagement and community around the plant collections of the Arboretum and Botanic Gardens and to create a narrative framework for exploring and understanding the remarkable diversity of plants nurtured in these spaces.
Click here to read our RFP, including the full scope of the work, desired timeline, and budget.
Questions? Please contact Elizabeth Lunney, Interim Executive Director at elunney@arboretumfoundation.org.
