Protecting Pollinators
Webinar replay from March 23, 2020
We should thank a pollinator at every meal. These diminutive creatures fertilize a third of the crops we eat. Yet half of the 200,000 species of pollinators are threatened. Birds, bats, insects, and many other pollinators are disappearing, putting our entire food supply in jeopardy. In North America and Europe, bee populations have already plummeted by more than a third and the population of butterflies has declined 31 percent.
Federal Highway Administration Pollinator Plantings
This Protecting Pollinators presentation explores why the statistics have become so dire and how they can be reversed. Jodi Helmer breaks down the latest science on environmental threats and takes readers inside the most promising conservation initiatives. Efforts include farmers reducing pesticides, cities creating butterfly highways, volunteers ripping up invasive plants, gardeners planting native flowers, and citizen scientists monitoring migration.
Along with inspiring stories of revival and lessons from failed projects, participants will find practical tips to get involved. They will also be reminded of the magic of pollinators—not only the iconic monarch and dainty hummingbird, but the drab hawk moth and homely bats that are just as essential. Without pollinators, the world would be a duller, blander place. Helmer shows how we can make sure they are always fluttering, soaring, and buzzing around us.
Jodi Helmer is an author and lecturer specializing in topics about food, farming, and the environment. Ms. Helmer’s work has appeared in publications like Sierra, Entrepreneur, NPR, National Geographic Traveler, AARP, Farm Life, Hemispheres, Civil Eats, The Guardian, JSTOR Daily, Smithsonian.com, Hobby Farms, Out Here/Tractor Supply Company and many more. I’m the author of six books, including Protecting Pollinators: How to Save the Creatures that Feed Us. She lives on a small homestead in rural North Carolina where she grows flowers and vegetables, keeps bees and raises chickens, goats and one very spoiled donkey.
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