Conservation and Management of Pollinators Project

The recent reports on the decline and collapse of important populations of pollinators have prompted the Global Environmental Facility to undertake a five year project on “Conservation and Management of Pollinators for Sustainable Agriculture through an Ecosystem Approach”. The project, implemented through the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) will help ensure food security through the protection of key pollinator species such as bees, bats and birds.

Pollinators, besides their role in the transfer of pollen between seed plants also maintain other ecosystem services including ensuring biodiversity and helping nature adjust to external threats such as climate change. Their population can be linked to such factors as disease, pesticide use, habitat loss and degradation, monocultures and the introduction of exotic species. The project is aimed to contribute to the conservation, sustainable use and management of pollinators by:

1. developing and implementing tools, methodologies, strategies and best management practices for pollinator conservation and sustainable use;
2. building capacities to enable the design, planning and implementation of interventions to mitigate pollinator population declines, and establish sustainable pollinator management practices; and
3. promoting the coordination and integration of activities related to the conservation and sustainable use of pollinators at the international level to enhance global synergies.

For details see the press release at:  http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=543&ArticleID=5893&l=en