Environment

Schneider Electric partners with Kew Gardens to accelerate climate-positive ambitions by 2030

Wednesday, 17 September 2025 4:08AM UTC

Schneider Electric teams up with the Royal Botanic Gardens to implement innovative energy solutions aimed at making Kew Gardens climate positive by 2030, setting a new standard in heritage conservation and environmental stewardship.

Schneider Electric has entered a strategic partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens (RBG) to help the world-renowned gardens achieve their ambitious goal of becoming climate positive by 2030. Appointed as Kew’s official energy sustainability partner, Schneider Electric will provide expert guidance and practical support to optimise energy use and reduce carbon emissions across Kew Gardens and Wakehurst, its wild botanic garden in Sussex.

The collaboration includes placing a dedicated energy optimisation engineer on site at Kew, seconded long-term to support the gardens in evaluating energy efficiency projects and implementing cutting-edge solutions. This hands-on resource will work closely with Kew to identify and implement opportunities within their complex infrastructure, including Building Management Systems (BMS) and Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems, and explore innovations such as battery storage and microgrids to enhance energy resilience.

Kew Gardens, a UNESCO World Heritage site, faces unique sustainability challenges due to its Grade 1 and 2 listed historic buildings, extensive scientific collections, and significant visitor footfall. Rachel Purdon, head of sustainability at RBG, acknowledged these complexities, noting that the partnership with Schneider Electric would be instrumental in transforming Kew’s comprehensive sustainability strategy into measurable decarbonisation outcomes. "We are proud of our commitment to urgently tackling the dual climate and biodiversity crises through everything that we do at Kew," Purdon remarked.

Kew’s Sustainability Strategy, launched in 2021, outlines a commitment to become climate positive by 2030 by rapidly reducing the organisation’s carbon footprint. The plan includes phasing out fossil fuels, increasing on-site renewable energy generation, upgrading to electric vehicles, installing heat pumps, and enhancing energy efficiency with low-energy lighting solutions. The strategy also aims to eliminate single-use plastics at food and drink outlets, underpinning Kew’s broader mission to confront environmental emergencies through collaboration and public engagement.

Kelly Becker, president of Schneider Electric UK, Ireland, Belgium, and the Netherlands, emphasised the shared vision between the two organisations. Becker highlighted Schneider Electric’s expertise in energy management and automation as key to advancing Kew’s climate goals and energy resilience — vital factors in safeguarding its vast botanical and mycological collections. She stated, “Maintaining a consistent energy supply is essential to protecting the world’s largest and most diverse botanical collections for humanity – and we’re honoured to be a part of the solution.”

This partnership aligns with Schneider Electric’s own sustainability ambition, which includes carbon-neutral operations by 2025, net-zero-ready operations by 2030, and achieving net-zero across its entire value chain by 2050. The company also recognises biodiversity as a critical sustainability issue and is committed to no net biodiversity loss in its direct operations by 2030, alongside ensuring deforestation-free sourcing of wood and water conservation efforts.

Kew Gardens’ commitment to a climate-positive future reflects its wider scientific leadership in the fight against biodiversity loss and climate change, supported by its Science Strategy 2021-2025. By harnessing Schneider Electric’s technologies and expertise, Kew aims to set a global example of integrating heritage conservation with cutting-edge sustainability practices—reinforcing its role not only as a guardian of botanical diversity but also as an innovator in environmental stewardship.

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Source: Noah Wire Services

More on this

https://industrialnews.co.uk/schneider-electric-supports-royal-botanic-gardens-reach-climate-positive-goals/ - Please view link - unable to able to access data
https://www.kew.org/about-us/press-media/kew-sustainability-strategy - In May 2021, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, launched its first Sustainability Strategy, aiming to become 'Climate Positive' by 2030. This strategy outlines commitments to rapidly reduce the organisation’s carbon footprint and utilise its expertise to address the environmental emergency. The plan includes transitioning away from fossil fuels, reducing carbon emissions, and optimising energy use across its sites in London and Sussex. The strategy also highlights the importance of collaboration and public engagement in achieving these goals.
https://www.businessweekly.co.uk/posts/schneider-electric-joins-the-kew-and-plants-seeds-of-progress-for-royal-botanic-gardens - In September 2025, Schneider Electric announced a strategic partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to help the organisation become climate positive by 2030. As Kew’s official Energy Sustainability Partner, Schneider Electric will assist in transitioning away from fossil fuels, reducing carbon emissions, and optimising energy use across Kew Gardens and Wakehurst. The partnership includes providing a dedicated energy optimisation engineer to support Kew in evaluating and implementing energy-saving opportunities within its infrastructure.
https://energydigital.com/news/can-kew-gardens-and-schneider-electric-go-climate-positive - In September 2025, Kew Gardens partnered with Schneider Electric to achieve climate positive status by 2030. The collaboration focuses on cutting fossil fuel dependence, boosting energy resilience, preserving biodiversity, and optimising energy use across Kew Gardens and Wakehurst. Schneider Electric will provide a dedicated energy optimisation engineer to support Kew in evaluating and implementing energy-saving opportunities within its infrastructure, including Building Management Systems and HVAC plants.
https://fmindustry.com/2025/09/02/supporting-kew-gardens-to-become-carbon-positive/ - In September 2025, Schneider Electric announced a partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, to support the organisation in becoming carbon positive by 2030. As Kew’s official Energy Sustainability Partner, Schneider Electric will advise on developing and delivering a comprehensive sustainability plan, including transitioning away from fossil fuels, reducing carbon emissions, and optimising energy use across Kew Gardens and Wakehurst. The partnership also involves providing a dedicated energy optimisation engineer to support Kew in evaluating and implementing energy-saving opportunities.
https://www.publicgardens.org/resource/climate-positive-2030-sustainability-strategy-urgently-tackling-climate-and-biodiversity/ - In May 2021, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, unveiled its 2030 Sustainability Strategy, aiming to become climate positive by 2030. The strategy includes a target to reduce 'core' emissions by 46.2% by 2030, against a 2019-20 baseline. Planned activities to reduce emissions include increasing on-site renewable electricity generation, upgrading vehicles to electric, installing heat pumps, fitting energy-efficient lighting, and phasing out single-use plastics from food and drinks outlets.
https://sustainabilitymag.com/news/whats-schneider-electrics-path-net-zero-sustainability/ - Schneider Electric has outlined its sustainability targets, aiming for carbon-neutral operations by 2025, net-zero-ready operations by 2030, and net-zero across the entire value chain by 2050. The company recognises biodiversity as a material sustainability issue and aims to achieve no net biodiversity loss in direct operations by 2030. Schneider Electric is also committed to 100% deforestation-free wood sourcing by 2030 and issuing water conservation plans across all sites in water-stressed areas by 2025.

Noah Fact Check Pro

The draft above was created using the information available at the time the story first emerged. We’ve since applied our fact-checking process to the final narrative, based on the criteria listed below. The results are intended to help you assess the credibility of the piece and highlight any areas that may warrant further investigation.

Freshness check

Score: 8

Notes: The narrative was first published on 2 September 2025. Similar reports appeared on 2 September 2025 in Business Weekly ([businessweekly.co.uk](https://www.businessweekly.co.uk/posts/schneider-electric-joins-the-kew-and-plants-seeds-of-progress-for-royal-botanic-gardens?utm_source=openai)) and FM Industry ([fmindustry.com](https://fmindustry.com/2025/09/02/supporting-kew-gardens-to-become-carbon-positive/?utm_source=openai)). The earliest known publication date of substantially similar content is 25 May 2021, when Kew Gardens announced its commitment to become climate positive by 2030 ([kew.org](https://www.kew.org/about-us/press-media/kew-sustainability-strategy?utm_source=openai)). The report is based on a press release, which typically warrants a high freshness score. No discrepancies in figures, dates, or quotes were found. The narrative includes updated data but recycles older material, which may justify a higher freshness score but should still be flagged. No republishing across low-quality sites or clickbait networks was identified.

Quotes check

Score: 9

Notes: The quotes from Rachel Purdon, Head of Sustainability at RBG Kew, and Kelly Becker, President of Schneider Electric UK, Ireland, Belgium, and the Netherlands, are consistent with their previous statements. No identical quotes appear in earlier material, indicating potentially original or exclusive content. No variations in quote wording were found.

Source reliability

Score: 7

Notes: The narrative originates from Industrial News, a less well-known outlet. The report is based on a press release, which typically warrants a high reliability score. No unverifiable entities or fabricated information were identified.

Plausability check

Score: 8

Notes: The claims about Schneider Electric's partnership with RBG Kew to achieve climate positive goals by 2030 are plausible and align with Schneider Electric's known sustainability commitments ([se.com](https://www.se.com/ww/en/about-us/sustainability/climate-commitment.jsp?utm_source=openai)). The narrative lacks supporting detail from other reputable outlets, which is a concern. The language and tone are consistent with the region and topic. No excessive or off-topic detail unrelated to the claim was found. The tone is formal and appropriate for a corporate announcement.

Overall assessment

Verdict (FAIL, OPEN, PASS): OPEN

Confidence (LOW, MEDIUM, HIGH): MEDIUM

Summary: The narrative is based on a press release announcing Schneider Electric's partnership with RBG Kew to achieve climate positive goals by 2030. While the content is plausible and the quotes are consistent with previous statements, the reliance on a single source and the lack of supporting detail from other reputable outlets raise concerns about the narrative's originality and potential for disinformation. Further verification from additional reputable sources is recommended.

Sustainability
Partnerships
Climate Change