{"id":48597,"date":"2025-04-25T05:52:16","date_gmt":"2025-04-25T05:52:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/48597\/"},"modified":"2025-04-25T05:52:16","modified_gmt":"2025-04-25T05:52:16","slug":"roanoke-college-earns-bee-campus-usa-certification","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/48597\/","title":{"rendered":"Roanoke College earns Bee Campus USA certification"},"content":{"rendered":"

ROANOKE, Va. <\/strong> \u2013 As part of its Earth Month celebration, Roanoke College has announced its certification as a Bee Campus USA site, recognizing its commitment to pollinator-friendly practices that support vital environmental needs.<\/p>\n

Roanoke is the 200th college or university nationwide to join the Bee Campus USA movement. The certification process was spearheaded by students majoring in environmental studies who were inspired to turn their learning into tangible action on campus.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to show how even small changes can be part of a big impact,\u201d said James Hartmann, a junior and one of five students who proposed the project as part of their senior practicum, a course that challenged them to tackle a real-world issue.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking with Bee Campus USA helped us better understand the policy side of environmental action and just how much planning and collaboration goes into every step of creating sustainability,\u201d Hartmann said. \u201cIt\u2019s rewarding to be part of something that will shape how the college supports pollinators for years to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Bee Campus USA is a national program designed to harness the strengths of higher education campuses to create better habitats for bees and other pollinators essential to the ecosystem. Collectively, pollinators support the growth of over 85% of flowering plants and 65% of agricultural crops. This year, a new study concluded that one in five pollinators in North America is at an elevated risk of extinction.<\/p>\n

As part of its Bee Campus USA certification, Roanoke reaffirmed its commitment to pro-pollinator landscape management practices, including the use of native plants on campus. Hartmann and his classmates also added a pollinator plant section to the campus garden on Hawthorn Road, where the Roanoke College Beekeeping Society maintains a hive and plans to add a second one next month.<\/p>\n

Pollinator habitats are also supported on Elizabeth Campus, where the Roanoke College Environment Center is restoring about five acres of meadows, woods, and creek swales. In 2024, it was able to install bat houses and bee houses, thanks to grants from the National Wildlife Federation, Mutual of Omaha\u2019s Wild Kingdom College and University Grant Program, and the Virginia Environmental Endowment Community Conservation Program.<\/p>\n

\u201cBee Campus USA certification is a wonderful acknowledgment of the work our campus is doing to create a healthier environment for pollinators,\u201d said Professor Kathy O\u2019Neill, chair of environmental studies at Roanoke. \u201cPollinators play a crucial role in our ecosystems, and we\u2019re proud to be part of a national effort to protect them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis process was particularly meaningful because it allowed our students to lead the charge on a campus-wide initiative,\u201d O\u2019Neill added. \u201cThrough research, collaboration, and project planning, they gained real-world experience in environmental stewardship and made a lasting impact on our college and local ecosystem.\u201d<\/p>\n

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