By Vanessa Bullwinkle

Pollinators (bees, butterflies, birds, bats, and others) play a large and often undervalued role in the production of the food we eat, the health of flowering plants, and the future of wildlife. A decline in the numbers and health of pollinators over the last several years poses a significant threat to biodiversity, global food webs, and human health, according to scientists.

PollinatorLIVE, brought to you by the US Forest Service – Conservation Education and many other sponsors and partners, including Project Learning Tree, is continuing last year’s distance learning adventure that focused on monarch butterflies.  This year’s FREE distance learning adventure will feature pollinators, citizen science projects, and gardening, plus keep you up-to-date with the latest about monarch butterflies.  For more information and to register, go to http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org.  Translations are available to encourage Spanish-speaking communities to participate in Polinizadores EN VIVO.

As part of PollinatorLIVE, participants can apply for one of Project Learning Tree's GreenWorks! grants to create a pollinator garden in their schoolyard or community. Grants of up to $500 are available and grant applications are due December 1st.

Register for PollinatorLIVE and participate in a series of live interactive webcasts, web seminars, and satellite field trips about pollinators, gardening, and conservation:

• On May 12, 2010, join us at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET for PollinatorLIVE: The Insect Zoo in Your Schoolyard.  Drop in to watch and participate in any or all of the program segments to learn about pollination, pollinators, participatory science projects, the latest about monarch butterflies, and how to attract pollinators to your schoolyard.  Five webcasts, featuring an all-star cast of scientists, will explain pollination, plant-insect interactions, the insect collection at the Smithsonian Institution, how students can “bee” scientists and contribute their data, and what can be done to help pollinators.  The webcast will also be simultaneously translated into Spanish.  On the day of the webcast, students can submit their questions by e-mail for experts to answer.

• In September 2010 (date TBA), join us for PollinatorLIVE: Honey Bees, Native Bees, and More.  Bees are champion pollinators and need pollen and nectar from a variety of sources.  That’s a good thing for us, since one out of three bites of food is the result of pollinators. 

• On April 13, 2011, join us at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Texas for Nature’s Partners:  Pollinators, Plants, and People.  Meet the pollinators and their plants and learn how people benefit.

• Additional web seminars are being planned to learn about the benefits of outdoor education, schoolyard gardens, and good nutrition.

PollinatorLIVE is geared toward students in grades 4 – 8, but the lesson plans and activities available can be used by teachers and students in earlier and later grade levels.  The PollinatorLIVE website features resources that meet National Science Education Standards for the classroom.  You’ll also find archived teacher training web seminars, for example, on the basics of schoolyard gardens, and how bees and other pollinators can help you teach science and meet standards in the field and classroom.

The PollinatorLIVE program primarily targets students and teachers, but it also focuses on ways community members can contribute to the conservation and protection of pollinators that play a vital role in the future of our international food resources and the health of wildlife, flowering plants, and people.  Both schools and community organizations may apply for Project Learning Tree GreenWorks! schoolyard or community garden grants to improve pollinator habitats.

Explore the webcasts, broadcasts, and professional development web seminars, register at http://pollinatorlive.pwnet.org, and apply for a grant.