Pollinator Partnership

The Pollinator Partnership or P2 is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization headquartered in San Francisco, California that works to protect the health of managed and native pollinating animals that are vital to wildland and agricultural ecosystems. The Pollinator Partnership’s mission of environmental stewardship and pollinator protection is achieved through conservation, policy, education, and research. Signature initiatives include the NAPPC (North American Pollinator Protection Campaign), National Pollinator Week,[1] and EcoRegional Planting Guides [2] that allow local citizens to plant gardens that provide habitats for important pollinating species.

Background and history

The Pollinator Partnership was founded as the Coevolution Institute (CoE) in 1997. The early mission of the organization was to promote research, outreach, and education relating to pollinating species and their floral associations. The importance of pollinators has been realized more vividly in recent years. The 1999 Convention on Biological Diversity SÃO PAULO DECLARATION ON POLLINATORS [3] brought to light both the roles that pollinators play in the daily lives of all human beings and their status as a group of species at risk.

Since 1997 P2 has grown and achieved national status as a leader in pollinator conservation. The multifaceted approach of targeting stakeholders ranging from farmers, growers, policy makers, industry, academia, education, and the general public has allowed P2 to launch parallel projects that work towards a common goal – protecting and promoting pollinator populations.

Partnerships and collaboration

P2 has many strong partnerships with institutions, organizations, corporations, and individuals that share a general concern for the conservation of biological diversity and the species that provide essential ecosystem services. The targeted focus on pollinators, however, is unique and is complemented by working relationships and alliances with other conservation institutions. P2 has worked closely with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to develop the EcoRegional Planting Guides. P2's conservation concern is relevant to a subset of the invertebrate species promoted by the Xerces Society.

Corporate partnerships with Burt's Bees and Häagen-Dazs have helped P2 to promote and preserve honey bee populations within the United States through their respective “Honey Bee Health”[4] and “HD Loves Honey Bees” [5] campaigns. P2 has also partnered with food producers and retailers such as Whole Foods Market, World Foods, Wyman's of Maine, and The Great Northern Roasting Company.

Scientific advisory panel

The conservation work of the Pollinator Partnership is backed by scientific evidence on pollinator decline. Steve Buchmann, Ph.D., co-author of The Forgotten Pollinators,[6] serves as P2's staff scientist. The P2 scientific advisory board includes famed entomologist E.O. Wilson, evolutionary ecologist Daniel Janzen, Ph.D.; entomologist May Berenbaum, Ph.D.; botanist Peter Raven, conservation biologist and president of Stanford's Center for Conservation Biology Paul R. Ehrlich, Ph.D.; chemical ecologist Thomas Eisner, Ph.D.; biologist Don Kennedy, Ph.D.; and scientist and natural history writer Adrian Forsyth, Ph.D.

References
  1. http://www.pollinator.org/pollinator_week_2009.htm
  2. http://pollinator.org/guides.htm
  3. http://www.bfn.de/fileadmin/MDB/images/themen/bestaeuber/agr-pollinator-rpt.pdf
  4. http://www.burtsbees.com/c/community/community-initiatives/colony-collapse-disorder/
  5. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2010-03-27. Retrieved 2010-03-25.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. The Forgotten Pollinators, http://www.ecobooks.com/books/pollinat.htm

Official website

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