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No visit to England is complete without a visit to the Eden Project. If it wasn't a 5 hour drive, I would go every year...fantastic.




Mission

'To promote the understanding and responsible management of the vital relationship between plants, people and resources leading to a sustainable future for all'.

The Eden Project was established as one of the landmark Millennium projects in the UK to mark the year 2000 and is structured as an educational charitable trust.

“The Trust’s interests lie in explaining how the natural world works seen through the lens of plants, exploring how people might best organise themselves in the face of this knowledge and thereby reach an understanding of what sustainability might mean and, through best practice of these principles, create an organisation that is sustainable to act as a model for others.”

(Tim Smit, CEO).

The Eden Project communicates its story in a ‘Living Theatre of Plants and People’ based in a large crater in which nestle two vast greenhouses (Biomes). These house plants, crops and landscapes from the humid tropics and warm temperate regions and act as a backdrop to the temperate landscape, which we call the Outdoor Biome. Eden uses exhibitions, art, storytelling, workshops, lectures and events to put messages across to both the public and formal education groups. The underlying concept presents to the widest possible public audience the need for environmental care through a celebration of what nature gives to us. Eden is demonstrating behaviour change on site, holding a mirror to our values and civilisation and encouraging respect for the things that sustain us.

The Eden Trust is the registered charity that owns the Eden Project. Money raised by the project is used to further its charitable aims. As a registered charitable trust we qualify for Gift Aid, where the government gives us 28p for every pound donated to us.

Eden is not for sale, it belongs to everyone. The Trust is unique in that it has deliberately set out to operate in the commercial arena. This is because we believe that only by demonstrating that ethical commerce is viable that we can affect real change in the global businesses that we would like to influence. We started locally with more than 200 suppliers and in our first year of trading put around £150 million of additional revenue into the local economy and have laid the foundations for concerted strategic action among our suppliers to deliver social and environmental benefits such as Waste Neutral.

Where in England is it and how many mile or Kms is a five hour drive, If I drive 5 hours in Oz thats about 500kms, were are so used to driving long distances, that it's just second nature to us. When I lived in Turkey we had English friends drive 1 hour around the harbour to come for dinner, they thought they had travelled so far to visit us they stayed over night, we were quite amused by it.:driving:

Well I know that Bez is in the South but I didn't think it would take 5 hours to cornwall, if your already in the South. I supposed you have lots of little villages and towns to travel through. our little towns are about 100ks apart and not much traffic in them or lights. speed limit is usually 110kms per hour on the open road.



I'm going to South Australia in a couple of weeks to pick up a trailer tent, 1200 kms away, we have one strech of road to go on that is 200kms with no corners. :driving: I hope we don't fall asleep.

I love the Eden project! It's really developed a lot since it was first constructed.

Just don't spend huge amounts of money in the gift shop - it's a bit pricey!

Can't say I've ever been to the Eden project, but by the sounds of it sounds really good. I went to the Millennium Dome and contrary to believe I found it rather good myself. So if the Eden project is an overall better experience than that I'll have to visit sometime.

chrisb84uk wrote: Can't say I've ever been to the Eden project, but by the sounds of it sounds really good. I went to the Millennium Dome and contrary to believe I found it rather good myself. So if the Eden project is an overall better experience than that I'll have to visit sometime.


Chris...I went to the Millenium dome and had a fantastic time. I believe the 'media' poisoned the public and caused it's downfall.

Th Eden project is nothing like the Dome. It is all about education about the environment, conservation and a wonderful experience. check out the website.

Bez wrote: Chris...I went to the Millenium dome and had a fantastic time. I believe the 'media' poisoned the public and caused it's downfall.

Th Eden project is nothing like the Dome. It is all about education about the environment, conservation and a wonderful experience. check out the website.


So true Bez, the dome was criticised from day one, and never got the appreciation that it deserved. I thought the majority of exhibits that were there were excellent and extremely knowledgable.



I shall check out the website as you recommend Bez, it sounds a really fascinating experience.

orangesox1 wrote: Well I know that Bez is in the South but I didn't think it would take 5 hours to cornwall, if your already in the South. I supposed you have lots of little villages and towns to travel through. our little towns are about 100ks apart and not much traffic in them or lights. speed limit is usually 110kms per hour on the open road.



I'm going to South Australia in a couple of weeks to pick up a trailer tent, 1200 kms away, we have one strech of road to go on that is 200kms with no corners. :driving: I hope we don't fall asleep.


The first hour is a fairly straight run on A roads and Motorway. Once you get passed Southampton, it is stop & start all the way west...loads of traffic jams in the height of the summer season. Most of the roads are single carriageway and as you say going through numerous towns and villages at 30mph. .....still it's worth it in the end provided you stay for a few days.

Bez wrote: The first hour is a fairly straight run on A roads and Motorway. Once you get passed Southampton, it is stop & start all the way west...loads of traffic jams in the height of the summer season. Most of the roads are single carriageway and as you say going through numerous towns and villages at 30mph. .....still it's worth it in the end provided you stay for a few days.


I remember as a child going through loads of traffic jams, and last time I visited England it took two hours to get from one part of London to Heathrow, that was in 2002, we couldn't belive it when our host told us we had to leave two hours early to get ther on time, it was peak hour traffic all the way. I love the country roads though.

The Eden project is just over an hour away from me, out of season.

I haven't been yet, it's always something you think to do in the summer but the gridlock on the roads puts me off, I must make the effort when I get a car though.

Betty Boop wrote: The Eden project is just over an hour away from me, out of season.

I haven't been yet, it's always something you think to do in the summer but the gridlock on the roads puts me off, I must make the effort when I get a car though.


In order to keep the money coming in to sustain their mission, The Eden Project team have many activities going on in the 'off season'. Ice skating, concerts, plays, exhibitions etc and of course the Biomes still flourish and bloom whatever the time of year. There has been a programme on BBC two about this over the last couple of weeks (on a Friday @ 9pm)

how much is it to get in