EU Green Week inspiration: 5 networks to watch

Have you heard thousands of young people all over the world calling upon us to get serious about the climate crisis? It’s high time we stopped making excuses and started acting. URBACT transfer networks offer concrete examples of how each and every city can contribute to a more sustainable future.

1. Bee-friendly cities - good for nature, good for people

Did you know that bees are one of the best indicators of environmental health? This is why the city of Ljubljana (SL), European Green Capital 2016, originally decided to support urban beekeeping and then things got a little out of control! It turned out that the bees (or was it honey?) had the power to bring so many people and activities together: from biodiversity protection to tourism, from corporate social responsibility to open source design. As part of BeePathNet network, Ljubljana and 5 partner cities are (re)discovering urban beekeeping as a way to co-create greener cities and stronger communities.

Bees under bombardment: New report shows multiple factors behind pollinator losses

A new UNEP report will show that bee colonies worldwide are under threat, with serious implications for biodiversity and food security.

The report - 'Global Honey Bee Colony Disorders and Other Threats to Insect Pollinators' - finds that multiple factors are responsible for declines in bee populations. These include habitat deterioration, air pollution, crop spraying and the widespread use of insecticides in plant cultivation.