These days mark the fifth anniversary of the publication of Pope Francis’ worldwide environmental laudato si. This font has had an enormous response worldwide. It is imbued with the basic idea that ecology and social issues have to be thought together: care for people and the protection of ecosystems are inextricably linked. It is an appeal to align our life and business with the principle of sustainability. However, this also includes critically rethinking your own lifestyle.
We combine this event five years ago with the annual Bee Day on May 20th worldwide. Our friend, Giovanni Niedda, philanthropist and bee-shephard, brought this to my attention and therefore sent me a small Italian film early in the morning (details at the end of this report).
Today – for the first time in public – we are starting our
new project “Bee and Tree – laudato si”.
Under this title we will keep you informed on our website about the specific projects in Ethiopia (especially), Uganda and Kenya. The project leader of PBF is the Kenyan Dan Amolo. He writes to me today:
Beekeeping is not just about the right application or even profit. In Africa, honey “flows” through centuries of culture and religion. The Holy City of Lalibela is even translated as “honeyeater”. It is named after its king, who according to legend was swarmed by bees as a newborn and miraculously woke up unscathed. His mother called him “Lalibela” and said that the bees recognized him as the real king. The opponent was his brother. Dan leads the project together with Abebe Zewdu.
Our current trustee in Lalibela is known to be Mesay Mequanent. He puts the project in the context of Covid-19 and writes to us:
This year’s “WORLD BEE DAY” is to be celebrated in a lockdown situation because the existing COVID-19 pandemic has an undeniable impact on the beekeeping sector, which has an impact on production, the market and consequently on the beekeepers’ livelihood. We at PBF in Lalibela celebrate this day with the project “HELP THE BEEKEEPERS TO HELP THE COMMUNITY”. We combine our experiences in Kenya and Durame in southern Ethiopia to start a work in Lalibela based on community projects. This beekeeping day is a lot for us today Give courage and motivation to implement our commitment effectively. We understand this commitment to beekeeping as supporting farmers in remote areas and to improve their food security – especially in this challenging situation today. We are working on modern beekeeping in the traditional centuries-old knowledge to integrate the bees, the use of bees’ products and their importance for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals. I would like to thank beekeepers all over the world who are still committed to creating a harmonious ecosystem and making the world a «pollinator- to make friendly place». Efforts are helpful not only for themselves, but also for the community as a whole.
P.B.
* The film www.lapsonline.it was created by an organization of young or young-at-heart beekeepers with their own ideas who sometimes think “out of the box”. With this campaign they celebrate World Bee Day. Everyone alone, but all together – despite corona. Her motto: vivere non e altro che…