Kira Platt-Behrens

2023

Horticulture

In honour of Sir John Pagan

Sponsored by the Ryde Student Fund.

Kira Platt Behrens reflects, “Gardening is more than tidying leaves. It’s about cultivating life, connection and purpose in plants and in people.”

In 2023, Kira was working as a maintenance gardener in Sydney after completing her apprenticeship. While passionate about gardening, she felt ready to grow beyond routine tasks and deepen her impact. The award of a Global Footprints Scholarship marked a turning point in her career.

Supported by BBM and the TAFE Ryde Student Fund, Kira took her passion overseas, beginning at the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh. Working alongside senior horticulturist Richard Brown, she contributed to maintaining woodland and rock gardens, collecting and sowing seeds, and assisting with erosion control through drainage installation. The garden’s commitment to ecological sustainability stood out rather than temporary displays, the team designs immersive biomes replicating natural environments. This experience reshaped Kira’s view of garden design as educational, sustainable, and emotionally powerful.

She witnessed scientists, nursery staff, librarians, and gardeners collaborating to conserve species, expand knowledge, and share the story of the planet’s ecosystems. This inspired a strong sense of pride in being part of that mission.

Kira then attended the International People and Plant Symposium in Reading, England, where the focus was on horticulture’s connection to health. She visited gardens promoting social connection and healing, including community food forests, hospital retreats, and rooftop gardens teaching people to grow their own food. These spaces highlighted the therapeutic power of gardens in supporting wellbeing.

Her journey continued with a placement at Thrive, a social and therapeutic horticulture organisation, where she worked at sites in Birmingham and London. There, Kira supported people living with health challenges through gardening activities that built skills, confidence, and connection to the environment and themselves.

Throughout her scholarship, Kira gained clarity in her purpose: to work at the intersection of horticulture and wellbeing. She now sees herself not just as someone who maintains gardens but as someone who cultivates growth in others and herself.

Kira is proud to be part of a global community dedicated to fostering sustainable futures through plants and people. This scholarship has deepened her understanding that gardens are not only beautiful but also powerful places for healing and connection.