On Friday April 6th 2012, a group of around twenty retired staff from the Kunming Institute of Botany made a little piece of Institute history by signing up to join the first formal volunteer program of Kunming Botanical Garden. This may seem a small step forward in the development and improvement of Kunming Botanical Garden but in fact it marks an important milestone in the internationalization of our garden.

The program was launched by Director LI Dezhu and Director SUN Weibang. Director LI commented that most gardens around the world operate a volunteer program. It was noted that retired staff are often key players in volunteer programs and Director LI expressed his gratitude to our former staff for offering their time and experience.

The program will initially concentrate on aspects of visitor management, guidance and orientation but, through time, it is planned to extend the range of activities delivered by volunteers. In commenting on behalf of the volunteers, DUAN Qiongying expresses her thanks for having the opportunity to help with the development of Kunming Botanical Garden and LI Lie added that she would do her best to be a diligent volunteer.

Opening Speech by Director LI Dezhu 

The Representative of Volunteers‘s Speech

Group Photo

(Image by Kunming Botanical Garden, KIB)