"Beekeeping is the poetry of agriculture".
-Slovenian saying.
"Not a single bee has ever sent you an invoice. And that is part of the problem, because most of what comes to us from nature is free, because it is not invoiced, because it is not priced, because it is not traded in markets, we tend to ignore it."
-Pavan Sukhdev, UN report: The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity
Whereas in the countryside the insect population is decreasing at an alarming rate, the city surprisingly creates spaces where 'wild' species intrude and blossem. On the roof of a communitity centre in Rotterdam I take care of some colonies of honeybees to create awareness of our urban insects.
In order to share my enthousiasm and knowledge of bumblebees, honeybees and beekeeping, I give lectures and organize excursions. The beehive provides great insights to think about the relationships between modern mankind and the natural world.
Apart from the hands-on-work with bees, I am interested in the history of beekeeping and the sociocultural meanings of beekeeping. There is much we can learn from the way people talk about bees and their role in politics, religion and health.
Who doesn't love the gifts of the bees? Once or twice a year I harvest some honey and distribute the jars of liquid gold amongst friends and aquintances. Experiments with making honey-beeswax-soap and propolis-salve are in development.
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