World Bee Day: A Call for Action to Save Pollinators
24 May 2018, Washington, DC - The inaugural World Bee Day was celebrated on May 20th, with an official ceremony taking place in Slovenia, to draw public attention towards the importance of preserving bees and other pollinators to ensure food diversity. Bees are under great threat from the combined effects of climate change, intensive agriculture, pesticides, biodiversity loss and pollution. The FAO Liaison Office for North America marked the date by hosting a roundtable discussion entitled, “World Bee Day: A Call for Action,” moderated by Nabeeha M. Kazi, President and CEO, Humanitas Global. Featuring a keynote address by H.E. Stanislav Vidovič, Ambassador of Slovenia to the US, experts shared their insights on the importance of raising awareness on the vital role of pollinators play in ensuring food security and the threats that they are currently facing from human activity, which is causing pollinator colonies to disappear.
The event was opened by Vimlendra Sharan, Director of the FAO Liaison Office for North America, who noted the strong leadership of the Government of Slovenia which was instrumental in establishing the international day through the UN General Assembly. “Without bees, it would be impossible to achieve a world without hunger. The Food and Agriculture Organization of United Nations estimates that 75% of all crop species grown for human consumption depend on pollinators. Bees and other pollinators sustain one-third of all agricultural crops produced globally,” Sharan said.
“Bees are being endangered. In Europe, nearly 10 per cent of bee species are facing extinction. Pollination crisis is one of the main reasons behind World Bee Day,” said Ambassador Stanislav “Slovenia has a long tradition of beekeeping, one out of 200 Slovenians are involved in bee-keeping,” he added. As a result, the Republic of Slovenia is the first country in the world to introduce legislation to protect bees. The Government of Slovenia, with the support of Apimondia, the International Federation of Beekeepers’ Associations and FAO, began the process to designate the global date in 2014. May was selected as the month where pollination is needed the most and where bees in the northern hemisphere start to reproduce. The date was based on the birthdate of the renowned Slovenia Carniolan apiarist Anton Janša in 1734.
Carolina Rizzi Starr, Biodiversity and Ecosystems Services Expert at FAO, who joined from Rome, highlighted FAO’s work on bees and pollinators with member countries, highlighting the International Pollinator Initiative. “Monitoring and building capacity around the initiative is crucial, however, more data is needed to fill in the gap of knowledge from member countries” she said. “Without pollinators, solving global food insecurity and hunger is impossible.”
Val Dolcini, President and CEO, Pollinator Partnerships, showcased how his work is dedicated to the protection and promotion of pollinators and their ecosystems, “From backyard gardeners to farmers and everyone in-between, we have guides to protect and support pollinators”. He noted that a global initiative such as World Bee Day requires all countries to come together and exchange knowledge and practices. He highlighted the upcoming National Pollinators Week, which will take place from June 18 to 24.
Leda Huta, Executive Director of Endangered Species Coalition, illustrated that over 69 pollinator species are currently endangered in the US, including the Rusty Patch Bumblebee and Franklin’s Bumblebee. “Habitat loss, pesticides and climate change are important reasons why pollinator species are becoming endangered” she added. Huta emphasized the need for literacy on bees and endangered species in order to contribute towards greater awareness from the general public.
Jay Evans, Research Leader of the Bee Research Lab at the US Department of Agriculture (USDA-ARS) acknowledged the importance of World Bee Day in showcasing all the activities to promote pollinators. He highlighted how his work focuses on supporting pollinators and the honeybee industry by the development of management strategies to help honeybees thrive in the face of disease, chemical stress, and inadequate forage.
In addition to the panelists, pollinator advocates showcased activities taking place to raise awareness. Muralist Matt Willey of the Good of the Hive initiative emphasized the need for literacy around pollinators, “Out of 2,000 students I’ve talked with through high school, only about 10% knew about pollination.” Willey is currently working on beehive installation in front of the UN headquarters in New York. Ivan Moore from the Center of Food Safety showcased a new app called Wild Bee ID that will be launched this summer to help gardeners and students learn more about bees and how to build habitats for pollinators. Peter Kwapong, Co-chair of the African Pollinator Initiative, highlighted activities the initiative is carrying out to raise awareness about pollinators in West Africa.
Despite their critical role, bees face significant threats including land-use change, pesticide use, monoculture agriculture and climate change, which can disrupt flowering seasons. Bees are a sign of well-functioning ecosystems, and the decline of pollinators is also a sign of the disruptions that global changes are causing to ecosystems. Bees and other pollinators finally have the place they deserve in view of their importance for the world and for humanity. The proclamation of 20 May as the World Bee Day proves that the will to take action exists. It also underlines the growing recognition of the urgency required to address challenges brought about by the decline in the global bee population.
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