Promote Pollinators and BES-Net webinars attract over 300 attendees
On December 1st 2020 and January 14th 2021, Promote Pollinators hosted two webinars in collaboration with the Biodiversity and Ecosystems Network (BES-Net). The webinar on December 1st was attended by over 200 professionals in the field of pollinator protection, but was unfortunately cut short due to technical issues. The second part of the webinar was rescheduled to January 14th, and attracted over 100 attendees. Both webinars were received enthusiastically and led to lively discussions between presenters and attendees in the chat. Were you unable to attend the webinars? The recordings of the webinars on December 1st and January 14th are now available.
Biodiversity and Pandemics
The first webinar focused on the relation between pandemics and biodiversity, in light of COVID-19. It highlighted the causes & effects of, and possible pathways to prevent pandemics. Hien Ngo of IPBES provided some insight into this topic by presenting the recently published IPBES report titled ‘Biodiversity and Pandemics’. This was followed by a discussion between Martijn Thijssen of the Promote Pollinators secretariat, and Prof. Taylor Ricketts of the University of Vermont.
Watch the recording of the first webinar: Pursuing pollinator-friendly pathways during COVID-19.
BES-Net Regional Trialogues
Over the last few years, BES-Net has organised several Regional Trialogues. The Trialogue is a unique approach bringing together science-policy-practice communities to adopt and implement the findings of the landmark IPBES thematic assessment on pollinators, pollination and food production and subsequent thematic assessments. The webinar on January 14th brought together representatives from five different countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, Nigeria and Kazakhstan) that participated in the Regional Trialogues. In their presentations, representatives explained how they have been integrating the findings from the IPBES assessment into policy, scientific research and on-the-ground programmes and projects, and how these efforts are implemented in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. This was input for a lively discussion in the chat, where attendees offered each other further advice on the topic.
Watch the recording of the second webinar: Experiences from BES-Net’s Regional Trialogues.
Future webinars
Although the Promote Pollinators secretariat is looking forward to the moment when we can meet in person again, it looks like this might still take a while. In the meantime, we will continue to bring together professionals, policymakers and other interested parties through webinars. We will keep you updated about future webinars via our website and newsletter. Are you interested in collaborating with us? Please contact Martijn Thijssen on thijssen@promotepollinators.org.