[Pollinator] 2018 NORTH AMERICAN POLLINATOR PROTECTION CAMPAIGN (NAPPC) AWARD WINNERS

[Isaac L]

*2018 North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) Award Winners*

http://pollinator.org/assets/globals/2018-NAPPC-Awards-Media-Advisory.pdf
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2018 Pollinator Advocate and Farmer-Rancher Award winners from the United
States, Canada and Mexico will be honored by Pollinator Partnership and the
North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) on October 16 at the
U.S. Botanic Garden in Washington, DC, which features a diverse collection
of flora benefiting multiple pollinator species.



NAPPC is a collaborative body of diverse partners, including respected
scientists, researchers, private sector stakeholders, conservationists and
government officials working to find common ground on innovative
initiatives that benefit pollinators. NAPPC’s 18th annual conference will
be held October 17-18 in Washington, DC.



“We are pleased to be able to recognize the outstanding efforts of these
special individuals, who are leading by example and taking innovative
actions that help make the North American landscape a better place for our
pollinating partners … the bees, butterflies, birds, bats, and other
species that we all rely upon” says Val Dolcini, President and CEO of the
Pollinator Partnership, which facilitates NAPPC.



A brief description of award winners and their actions follows:



*2018 NAPPC Pollinator Advocate – United States*

*Dr. Andony Melathopoulos *of* Oregon State University *is an entomologist
with a passion for promoting bee health and educating growers, forest
landowners, landscapers, the general public, and pesticide users. He has
worked with various stakeholders to make tremendous strides in helping
develop a strategic plan to promote the health of both wild and managed
bees in the State of Oregon. In early 2017, he *was instrumental in the
creation of the* *Oregon Bee Project*, a multi-agency initiative aimed at
protecting bees from pesticide exposure, increasing habitat, reducing
impacts of diseases and pests on bees, and expanding understanding of the
bees of Oregon. As part of this initiative, Dr. Melathopoulos has trained
163 individuals and formed 10 regional volunteer groups to collect and pin
bees for the *Oregon Bee Atlas*. For *Pollinator Week 2018*, he coordinated
20 events across the state. He has also *produced 50 episodes of
PolliNation Podcast*, which feature special guests and highlight issues
bees face. Since September 2016, Dr. Melathopoulos has personally *presented
to more than 2,500 pesticide applicators on practices to minimize pesticide
exposure risk to bees*.



*2018 NAPPC-NACD Farmer-Rancher - United States*

*John and Nancy Hayden* have been proprietors of *The Farm Between* in
Jeffersonville, Vermont for 26 years. The Farm Between is a *20-acre
certified organic nursery and fruit farm* specializing in production and
sale of pollinator-dependent fruit and berry crops, shrubs, and trees, and
more than half of the farm’s area is devoted to pollinator habitat
enhancement. John, a trained entomologist, has made a number of significant
contributions in the area of pollinator conservation and management,
including the *establishment of a 14-acre pollinator sanctuary* at a former
dairy farm, where he conducts long-term bee species diversity monitoring
and demonstrates effective pollinator land management practices. In 2007,
John and Nancy *founded Seeds of Self-Reliance*, a nonprofit organization
with international scope working to promote biological diversity of
pollinators and other organisms in the context of sustainable agriculture.
A related program, *Pollinator Pathways*, provides outreach and education
in Vermont on the importance of pollinators to our food systems. In 2016,
John was* appointed by Vermont’s governor to serve on the state’s
Pollinator Protection Committee, and he is frequently asked to testify
before legislative committees* on pending legislation related to pesticide
use, pollinator conservation, and sustainable agriculture.



*2018 NAPPC Pollinator Advocate – Canada*

*The Farmlands Trust Society* (FLT) is a charitable not-for-profit
organization located in Saanichton, British Columbia. The FLT works to
enhance farming capacity in the Greater Victoria area by protecting local
farmland, protecting eco-sensitive and culturally special areas, producing
food for those in need, providing relevant educational opportunities,
promoting the economic viability of farmland, and providing community
access and public awareness programs. Since 2012, the society has been
gradually *returning the 100-year-old historic Newman Farm in Saanichton to
active agricultural uses*. FLT leads the “field to plate” initiative at
Newman Farm where FLT volunteers grow, harvest, and *donate local fruits
and vegetables to those in need at Our Place Society* in Victoria to aid in
relieving poverty and mitigating food insecurity for marginalized
populations in society. They are also important, active members of the *Island
Pollinator Initiative*.



*2018 NAPPC Farmer-Rancher – Canada*

*Cody Straza and Allison Squires *are co-owners and operators of *Upland
Organics*, a 2000 acre certified organic grain farm near Wood Mountain,
Saskatchewan. Their vision is to create a family orientated,
environmentally and economically sustainable organic farming operation,
which contributes in a positive and significant way to both the local
community and the greater organic agricultural community. To this end, they
are working towards *converting their entire farm to no-till*. Cody serves
as the *Vice President of SaskOrganics*, allowing him to promote the
organic industry across the prairie provinces. He also joined the *Organic
Value Chain Round Table*, bringing the prairie farmer’s perspective and
input to national level discussions. Allison promotes involving organic
producers at the individual farm level and believes that it will contribute
to the overall applicability of research in this sector. She has helped
implement several *on-farm research projects at Upland Organics*, and
serves as *director on the Canadian Organic Growers* board. Upland Organics
is a *certified Bee Friendly Farm through Pollinator Partnership*. They are
one of the few large-acre farms in Canada to hold this certification.



*2018 NAPPC Pollinator Advocate – Mexico*

*César Damian and Elena Barba *are co-founders and directors of *FRONDA*, a
non-profit organization whose objective is to promote artistic disciplines
in rural and urban spaces outside of Mexico City, through the creation of
projects aimed at the creation, exploration, training, exchange and
dissemination of interdisciplinary and intercultural art. In February,
FRONDA *developed the culture event “Symbiosis, Encounters between Bees,
Artists and Scientists” in Mexico*. FRONDA is *adapting Border Free Bees’
methods of community-based art practice and collaborations* to the Mexican
context where students are often afraid to speak out about environmental
issues. FRONDA intends to weave ties between artists, educators,
scientists, physical places, and memory, through activities of interaction
with the community, giving pollinator projects an emphasis that favors the
Mexican identity and local values.



*2018 NAPPC Business for Bees*

*Francis Ford Coppola Winery* (FFCW) farms *75 acres of Bee Friendly
Certified vineyards* at its Geyserville, California winery. FFCW and the
surrounding estate are also certified by the *California Sustainable
Winegrowers Alliance*, a program that provides third-party verification of
a winery’s commitment to sustainability and covers all aspects of
operations including vineyards, wine production, worker safety,
environmental impacts and continuous improvement. In addition to the
vineyards, FFCW has *extensive gardens that provide 6,000 lbs. of produce
annually* for the restaurants and flowers for decoration. Through the
*integrated
pest management* program, they *promote the biodiversity* of the vineyard
with beneficial insects, soil fauna, bluebird boxes, and owls that combat
pests of grapevines. *Soil erosion is prevented* using three-season cover
crops that also replenish essential nutrients back into the soil. As a
wider initiative, FFCW is part of Sonoma County Winegrower’s three-phase
commitment to *become the nation’s first 100% sustainable wine region by
2019*.



*2018 NAPPC Roadside Managers*

The *Illinois Department of Transportation* (IDOT) has demonstrated their
long-term commitment to pollinator habitat in multiple ways, including new
mowing policies that will *create an estimated 100,000 additional acres of
pollinator habitat and the dedication of $500,000 of their annual budget
for new pollinator habitat and restoration projects*. They have also
updated the statewide seeding specifications and standards to include
monarch butterfly and pollinator friendly seed mixes, with multiple species
of milkweed. Additionally, they place a large emphasis on pollinator
friendly rights-of-way (ROW) management, partnering with companies to *provide
habitat along ROWs*, engaging in multiple ROW working groups, serving on
the ROW Sector Technical Team in 2017 and 2018, and *drafting the
Transportation ROW strategies* for the sector. IDOT regularly engages the
public with by staffing fair booths, registering existing habitat, and
*distributing
over 7,000 seed packets*. They are working towards *restoring 200 acres of
pollinator habitat* since August 2016.



The NAPPC conference, hosted by the US Department of Agriculture, will take
place October 17-18 and topics included the effects of climate change on
pollinators; pathogens, pesticides and pollinators; the current state of
the monarch butterfly; the native bee diversity of prairies; the importance
of pollinators for agriculture; the Million Pollinator Garden Challenge; an
update on the beekeeping industry; and reports from honey bee health
researchers on projects funded through NAPPC.  Task forces worked to select
consensus-based projects and desired outcomes for the coming year.

Additional information about pollinator award winners from 2018 and
previous years is available at http://pollinator.org/awards.



*ABOUT THE POLLINATOR PARTNERSHIP (P2) AND THE NORTH AMERICAN POLLINATOR
PROTECTION CAMPAIGN (NAPPC)*

Established in 1997, P2, a 501(c)3 headquartered in San Francisco,
California, was incorporated in 1997.  P2’s mission is to promote the
health of pollinators, critical to food and ecosystems, through
conservation, education, and research.  Visit www.pollinator.org for more
information. Interviews with P2 President and CEO Val Dolcini are available
by request.



P2 facilitates NAPPC, a tri-national collaboration working to promote
awareness and scientific understanding of pollinators; to gather, organize
and disseminate information about pollinators; to provide a forum to
identify and discuss pollinator issues; and to promote projects,
initiatives and activities that enhance pollinators.  NAPPC's mission is to
encourage the health of resident and migratory pollinating animals in North
America. NAPPC partners gather from throughout the North American continent
to raise public awareness and education and promote constructive dialogue
about pollinators’ importance to agriculture, ecosystem health, and food
supplies. NAPPC encourages collaborative, working partnerships among
participants and with federal, state and local government entities. The
annual conference strengthens the network of associated organizations
working on behalf of pollinators to promote conservation, protection and
restoration of habitat, and to document and support scientific, economic
and policy research. Information about NAPPC, including past
accomplishments and highlights of past NAPPC conferences, is available at
http://pollinator.org/nappc.
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