A panoramic view of the Okanagan Valley with West Kelowna in the foreground and mountains in the background
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A lone honeybee on the petals of a flower

Border Free Bees is pleased to announce the expansion of The Bee Ambassador Project to the entire continent! 

The Bee Ambassador Project began as a Nectar Trail in one neighbourhood in Kelowna, B.C. in 2017 and expanded to include the whole city in 2018. 


Due to growing interest, Border Free Bees (BFB) supporters and partners expanded the project, once again, to include all of North America. Now, anywhere in North America, you can join the movement to protect wild pollinators by creating a bee-friendly zone on your property.

Bee enthusiasts and gardeners can join by making a commitment to create bee habitat and registering their garden or plot with the Pollinator Partnership’s Million Pollinator Garden Challenge. On the BFB website, Bee Ambassadors can find gardening resources and download a sign for their garden in English, French or Spanish.


“The commitments are pretty simple,” says Nancy Holmes, University of British Columbia (UBC) Associate Professor of Creative Writing who spearheaded the previous Bee Ambassador programs in Kelowna. “Simple but effective: maintain a minimum one-square meter plot of region-appropriate flowers that bloom from spring to fall; use no pesticides; and put up a sign that we provide for you! It’s that easy.”

Dr. Cameron Cartiere, Professor at Emily Carr University of Art + Design, notes that inviting people to register their gardens as part of the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge is a key strategy for underscoring the interconnectedness of bee conservation and ecology, and a natural step for BFB. 

“We have also partnered with the Pollinator Partnership on an amazing new Citizen Science Bee ID app, Insight, free for use by individuals and organizations across North America. Border Free Bees and our Mexican partners, FRONDA, have both won awards from the Pollinator Partnership. Our initiatives continue to make bee conservation a truly continental focus.” - Dr. Cameron Cartiere, Professor at Emily Carr University of Art + Design

A grandmother and granddaughter smiling while gardening  A teacher showing seedlings to students  A child closely examining flowers on a plant in a garden box

Border Free Bees (BFB) and Kelowna Museums are hosting a workshop to help people become Travelling Bee Ambassadors - on April 3, 2019 in Kelowna - Click here for more information.

 

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