Religious Groups Join Effort to Protect Pollinators
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By Faith News Note
A pilot program of Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon for “faith-based pollinator protection” is an attempt to help reverse the loss of bee populations in our area. The project is part of Ecumenical Ministries’ Interfaith Network for Earth Concerns and joins an effort by Faith Task Force of the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign, The Tributary Fund and Pollinator Partnership. The Portland group includes 13 faith organizations. Their campaign kickoff was on May 11th at the Muslim Community Center’s Seeds of Understanding Garden. Projects will include adding bee boxes and creating new habitat with native plants.
A report by the National Resource Defense Council [6] states that 30 percent of the world’s agricultural crops and 90 percent of wild plants rely on bees and other pollinators to reproduce. A “Citizen Science” project, set up by researchers at San Francisco State University, is available for individual citizens and families to participate in a national pollinator count at https://www.greatsunflower.org [7].