Intro. & Bees

For my first post, I want to introduce this blog as one centered on a theme of worldly social and environmental issues.  Not all bad, not all good.  I will post about current, varying topics that I believe are important for everyone to know at least a little about as a citizen of the planet.  I am not a sensationalist; I simply believe in being informed. So, I will try to present information without the typical fear and guilt-inducing tactics ubiquitous in mainstream media. 

One seemingly insignificant, but truly monumental issue currently, is the decline of the honeybee population.  The decline has been massive enough to convince the White House to pass legislation to find ways to save them and research habitat preservation.  The reasons for decline are extensive and complicated – they’ll come in the next post.  For now, I’ll keep it basic by explaining why bees are essential: they are pollinators responsible for one-third of the world’s food supply.  This heavy statement has been cited by various sources, such as in the attached video by SciShow.  This means we have honeybees to thank for our bountiful supplies of fruit and nuts, as well as other foods and plants.  Without them, parts of our food supply would be hugely diminished and scarce.  The decline is already bad enough that, for certain crops, bee colonies are transported to pollinate from different states, and bee keepers all over the U.S. are trying to help make up for the population loss by cultivating more of their own colonies and hives.  Savannah Bee Company is a great grassroots company based in Savannah, Ga. that produces various goods from honey and maintains bee colonies.  They also provide great and fun information on bees: http://savannahbee.com/bee-education/.  NPR also has a collection of news stories on bee population decline and the efforts to reverse it.

Bees are essential and some of the most valuable contributors to our livelihood.  Let’s appreciate them, and in the next post I’ll include insights into how to support them.