There’s no escaping the fact that honey bees are in trouble today—nor that people genuinely want to do something to help. Yet, good intentions have ways of running aground in the face of full schedules and other demands of daily life. The good news—both for the bees and for ourselves—is that there are things we all can do to help, simple things that can add up to make a difference.
Marla Spivak of the University of Minnesota explains the situation for the bees beautifully in her TEDGlobal 2013 presentation, “Why bees are disappearing,” and suggests that we plant flowers. She also speaks with Guy Raz in a TED Radio Hour segment—“Why Are Bees Disappearing?”—aired by National Public Radio, in which she again suggests that we plant flowers. As she explains:
Maybe it seems like a really small countermeasure to a big huge problem – just go plant flowers. But when bees have access to good nutrition, we have access to good nutrition through their pollination services. Every one of us needs to behave a little bit more like a bee society, where each of our individual actions can contribute to a grand solution, an emergent property that’s much greater than the mere sum of our individual actions. So let the small act of planting flowers and keeping them free of pesticides be the driver of large-scale change.
Planting for Pollinators
Although viewed by close to two million now, the presentation deserves additional views—until well after we transform the landscape. Simple things do add up. Yet, we receive a bonus in this: imagine how much additional beauty we will bring into our lives by planting with pollinators in mind!
Plant suggestions by region are available from the Pollinator Partnership and Xerces Society.
SRC: View the video at: www.ted.com/talks/marla_spivak_why_bees_are_disappearing?
Listen to the radio program at: www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=225440117