25 years of the Eden Project: Our impact so far
To mark our 25th anniversary, we've commissioned a landmark Impact Report, which celebrates a quarter of a century of the Eden Project's regeneration, inspiration and global impact. Eden demonstrates the value of investing in bold projects to deliver significant, long-term sustainable growth.
As an educational charity, we inspire hope and positive action for the planet by reconnecting people with the natural world. From our home in Cornwall, a world-renowned global garden, and through new projects across the UK and beyond, we deliver nature recovery, education and community programmes to enrich life and unearth wonder.
Visit us in our 25th anniversary year to experience Eden for yourself and see how we've grown.
Since we opened our doors in 2001 we've:
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Delivered £6.8 billion in total economic impact to the South West
...and £5.7 billion net additional economic impact to Cornwall
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Welcomed over 25 million visitors
...including 80% from outside Cornwall, generating £8.4 billion total visitor spend
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Supported 700 jobs on average a year
...430 as part of the Eden team (91% live in Cornwall) and 260 in the wider economy
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Spent £630 million on operating expenditure
....strengthening supply chains and helping drive economic activity well beyond the site itself (less than 2% went outside the UK)
A blueprint for economic growth
From a former clay mine with no soil or plants, Eden has become a world-leading environmental showcase and a global symbol of renewal.
The Eden Project is a blueprint for how a bold cultural and environmental project can become a nationally significant economic asset – supporting jobs and driving regional growth across the UK.
To this day, the Eden Project is a living example of how culture and nature-led regeneration can function as long-term economic infrastructure. The impact we’ve delivered reflects the collective commitment of our team and wider networks, and it has been made possible with the incredible support of our visitors, members and supporters.
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“ Eden is not the starry-eyed creation of visionaries. On the contrary, a group of ordinary people dared to dream ...when you dream at scale, communities, economies and ecosystems can rise together. ”
Inspiring the next generation
Collectively, we’ve reached roughly 1 million through education - more than 750,000 children and young people have visited Eden for school and college trips – that’s over 30,000 annually!
Eden now delivers nearly 40 curriculum-linked workshops, from pre-school to postgraduate level, alongside an online learning programme reaching tens of thousands nationwide.
Through Sky Primary and Eden Project Nursery, we provide nature-based, enquiry-led education rooted in sustainability and global citizenship. We have also partnered with leading universities to support around 200 undergraduate and postgraduate students studying sustainability-focused degrees.
A demonstrator of climate innovation and nature recovery
The Eden Project is committed to becoming a climate-positive organisation by 2030, and we are home to the UK’s first new operational deep geothermal power plant since 1986. The 5km geothermal well provides heat for the Eden Project Biomes, nursery and building, saving up to 500 tonnes of CO2 a year and helping reduce gas use to almost nothing.
We meet two-thirds of Eden's water needs by harvesting rainwater and groundwater, and no waste goes to landfill.
The National Wildflower Centre is part of the Eden Project family and is restoring the nation’s wildflower meadows and saving some of the country’s unique flora by working with communities, corporate partners and other organisations to set up seedbanks and grow new plants.
Bringing communities together
Since 2009, The Big Lunch – launched by the Eden Project to bring communities together with food – has inspired over 1.5 million events, connecting 120 million people and boosting social connection, belonging and local pride.
Since 2005, the Eden Project has helped over 1,000 people each year benefit from having a closer relationship with nature through its Nature Connections programmes. This covers everything from therapeutic horticulture to walking groups and nature workshops, and in 2016 extended to working with GPs and healthcare practitioners to offer programmes through social prescribing. This programme is now being rolled out across the UK to communities worst affected by climate change and health inequalities.
Bold projects beyond Cornwall
The ‘Eden Effect’ is also having an impact around the world. In Costa Rica, Eden is restoring a dry tropical rainforest biological corridor, expanding habitats for wildlife while empowering local communities to play a central role in its recovery. There are also Eden Project sites in Expo City, Dubai and Qingdao, China.
With Eden Project Morecambe in development and Eden Project Scotland in design, our Impact Report also signals what the ‘Eden Effect’ could mean for other parts of the country.
Let’s build what’s next, together
We want to reach millions more people with our social, educational, and nature-based programmes, but we can’t do this alone. We’re inviting partners, philanthropists and purpose-driven businesses to help us shape Eden’s next chapter.
We firmly believe that the future remains ours to make and that through working together, ordinary people can change the world for the better. It is this belief that drives us forward and underpins our mission to demonstrate and inspire positive action for the planet.
Get in touch at CorporatePartnerships@edenproject.com to find out how you can join us in inspiring millions of people to act for the planet’s health.
