The University of Oregon is a certified Bee Campus. Pollinators perform the important task of fertilizing many plants, allowing them to produce seeds and fruits. A healthy pollinator community requires diverse flowering vegetation for foraging, adequate nesting sites, and minimal exposure to pesticides. The SSC supports work to create and maintain such suitable habitats across the University of Oregon campus and inspire others to protect these essential invertebrates. To learn more about our pollinator-friendly habitats, visit the pollinator layer of the UO campus map.
Importance of Native Species
Native pollinators are essential to a thriving ecosystem. They have been pollinating native plants in North America long before the introduction of European honeybees in the 1600s. Thus, many plants are dependent on the species they co-evolved with for their fertilization. The SSC’s Pollinator Program focuses its work on protecting and educating the UO community about native species.
History
The University of Oregon became a certified Bee Campus in the spring of 2018. The UO Bee Friendly Committee, a student-run organization, took on the important role of collaborating with local leaders to organize volunteers and make the UO campus a safe and welcoming place for pollinators. To expand the university’s impact on pollinator conservation, the Student Sustainability Center created the Pollinator Program, which continues to partner with the UO Bee Friendly Committee, Urban Farm Director Harper Keeler, landscape designer Jane Brubaker, and many others. To learn more about the UO’s efforts to conserve pollinators, refer to our Bee Campus reports:
The Bee Friendly Community
The SSC supports the Bee Friendly Committee, a UO student organization, that maintains honeybee hives at the Grove Garden and the roof of the EMU. To get involved with the Bee Friendly Committee, find them on Engage or follow their Instagram (@uobeefriendly).