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Bees on the beach

The world has landed in Malta this week – and our bees are there too – putting the plight of the world’s bees and pollinators on the agenda of people and governments meeting here from across the Commonwealth.

Right place

Malta is a good place to highlight bees and pollinators as the name of the islands comes from the Greek word ‘meli’, meaning ‘honey’.

The wild bees here are also vital for maintaining the range of plants and quality of crops grown here.   The islands even have a special type of honey bee found only here.

Bees on the Beach

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Buzz word

Resilience is the word on everyone’s lips at the meetings here.

Food security, climate change and people’s control over what they grow and eat are high in people’s minds.  But scan the official programme and there’s no mention of bees and pollinators.

Yet the food, medicines and materials we use every day come from the plant species they pollinate.  And 70% of the world’s 124 main crops depend on pollination by bees and other beneficial insects.

Right time

Bee and pollinator decline is a global and national concern.

In the UK we have persuaded the Government to adopt an action plan to reverse their decline. Imagine if the Commonwealth’s 50+ members took similar strides.

There could be globe-spanning action boosting bees and protecting pollinators across Asia, Africa and Europe to the Caribbean, the Americas and the Pacific.

With a little help from our bees and a read of the report we are launching here with the Commonwealth Human Ecology Council (CHEC), Bees and Pollinators: A Commonwealth Concern, action for bees and pollinators could take off from Malta across the Commonwealth.

Follow the action

You can follow the action in Malta on Twitter by following @pauldezylva and #CWPeople #CPF2015 #CHOGM2015

Post written by Paul de Zylva, 23 November 2015

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