ASSOCIATION ADVOCACY
Key advocacy issues
Making plants part of every conversation
When you make advocacy a habit, you are growing awareness of public gardens everywhere.
Issues affecting your garden affect gardens across the field, and the world.
TALENT DEVELOPMENT
The Association supports measures to increase funding for and opportunities for apprenticeships and STEM-related education in the field of public horticulture.
529 “College” savings accounts can now be used to pay for post-high school credential programs not offered by traditional college or universities. These provisions are particularly valuable for public gardens looking to attract adult learners who want to use their 529 funds for real-world skills, licenses and certifications that can potentially help them grow in their careers or switch to new fields.
The Office of Education supports formal, informal, and non-formal education projects and programs through competitively awarded grants and cooperative agreements to a variety of educational institutions and organizations in the United States.
Next Gen STEM, a project of NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement, enables informal education institutions to bring meaningful NASA connections and mission-inspired STEM content and programs into their communities
MUSEUM FUNDING
In the United States at the Federal and State levels, public gardens are most often classified as “living museums”.
The Association works with our museum Association peers in advocating for increased government funding for museums.
Universal Charitable Deduction
APGA advocated for this bipartisan, bicameral measure as “The Charitable Act” with The American Alliance of Museums and The American Society of Association Executives before it was included in the Budget Reconciliation Bill of 2025.
The Association took no position on the Reconciliation bill itself.
APGA advocacy along withe hundreds of museum advocates at the American Alliance of Museums’ “Museums Advocacy Day” has increased funding for these matching grants from $30M to over $55M in 10 years.
This sustained advocacy presence by the museum community has also contributed to Congress’ continued support of funding for organizations like IMLS, NEA, and NEH, while the current Administration has attempted to close these agencies.
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is the only arts funder in the United States—public or private—that provides access to the arts in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. jurisdictions. Our work extends into communities of all sizes across America through a vast network that includes artists, arts workers, audiences, learners, and organizations at the local, state-wide, regional, and national levels.
More than 60% of Arts Endowment grants that go to small and medium-sized organizations (budgets up to $2 million).
NEH is an independent federal agency that supports the humanities in every state and U.S. jurisdiction.
Since 1965, NEH has awarded over $6 billion to support museums, historic sites, universities, teachers, libraries, documentary filmmakers, public TV and radio stations, research institutions, scholars, and local humanities programming.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Plants are the foundation of all life on Earth. The Association’s advocacy seeks to make plants part of every conversation.
United States Botanic Garden Strategy for Plant Conservation
The Association is working with the Center for Plant Conservation, BGCI-US, the Southeastern Plant Conservation Alliance, and many APGA members in developing the United States Botanic Garden Strategy for Plant Conservation.
Paris Climate Accords
The American Public Gardens Association and its over 600 member institutions serve more than 120 million visitors annually. Our association full supports the Paris Climate Accords and their underlying principles and objectives. We join the ranks of major corporations including GE, ExxonMobil, BP, Gap, Apple, Tesla, Disney, and Mars in opposition to withdraw.
We believe the withdrawal of the United States from the Accords presents a compelling opportunity for our profession to continue our existing advocacy for the communities we serve and advance our shared vision for a healthy planet. Our gardens connect people to plants and nature, and as such are uniquely poised to be places where people can experience the dynamics of the natural world, including shifts in climate, with all their senses.
