PURPOSE: Raising awareness of the importance of bees and beekeeping, by informing the public of beekeeping events around the world and celebrating World Bee Day every year on 20 May. The main purpose of the events is to spread awareness of the significance of bees and other pollinators for our survival. The FAO, as the organizer of the event invites the member states, organizations, research and educational institutions, civil society, the private sector, farmers and beekeepers, as well as each individual, to preserve bees and other pollinators.
FORUM: “Bee engaged in pollinator-friendly agricultural production.”. World Bee Day 2023. Bees and other pollinators are fundamental for the health of ecosystems and food security. They help maintain biodiversity and ensure the production of nutritious food. However, intensive monoculture production and improper use of pesticides pose serious threats to pollinators by reducing their access to food and nesting sites, exposing them to harmful chemicals, and weakening their immune systems. Under this year theme, we call for global action to support pollinator-friendly agricultural production and to highlight the importance of protecting bees and other pollinators, particularly through evidence-based agricultural production practices. Follow the conversations with the hashtags: #worldbeeday, #20May, #SavetheBees.
EVENTS: Join us online on May 20th to celebrate World Bee Day 2023. The global World Bee Day ceremony, which will be held at the FAO headquarters on Friday, 19 May, 10.00 - 11.30 CEST will be an opportunity to raise awareness of the importance of adopting pollinator-friendly agricultural production practices to protect bees and other pollinators, while contributing to the resilience, sustainability and efficiency of agrifood systems. Register to participate and watch the livestream!
PODCASTS: If bee families continue to disappear in Europe at current or even higher rates, this could lead to the breakdown of the economy and put our health and well-being at risk Pollinators are economically, socially and culturally important; Focusing attention to the importance of engagement and actions. Listen to the audio-podcasts!
CAMPAIGN MATERIALS: A Call for Preserving Bees. Inform, educate and engage audiences with real facts. Join the campaign by sharing our free material on digital channels and raise awareness about the need to protect bees and other pollinators. Find out more about how you can promote World Bee Day by reading the Get involved guide. Get the campaign materials! and the communication toolkits.
WHY WE CELEBRATHE THE DAY?
We must realise that simply proclaiming World Bee Day does not do much for bees and other pollinators; the main work aiming towards their preservation still needs to be undertaken and World Bee Day is an excellent opportunity in this regard. Beekeepers and nature conservationists would like to ask everybody to help improve the conditions for bees, thus improving conditions for the survival of people. No major steps are needed; what counts is each and every action that facilitates the existence of bees. A study published in the journal Lancet predicts that smaller consumption of fruit and vegetables due to climate change which also affects pollinators, will cause twice as many deaths by 2050 than hunger and malnutrition.
Every individual can contribute to the preservation of bees and other pollinators:
Plant nectar-bearing flowers for decorative purposes on balconies, terraces, and gardens.
Buy honey and other hive products from your nearest local beekeeper.
Raise awareness among children and adolescents on the importance of bees and express your support for beekeepers.
Set up a pollinator farm on your balcony, terrace, or garden; you can either make it yourself or buy at any home furnishings store.
Preserve old meadows – which feature a more diverse array of flowers – and sow nectar-bearing plants.
Cut grass on meadows only after the nectar-bearing plants have finished blooming.
Offer suitable farming locations for the temporary or permanent settlement of bees so that they have suitable pasture; as a consequence, they will pollinate our plants, which will thereby bear more fruit.
Use pesticides that do not harm bees, and spray them in windless weather, either early in the morning or late at night, when bees withdraw from blossoms.
Mulch blooming plants in orchards and vineyards before spraying them with pesticides so that they do not attract bees after being sprayed.