Idioma: English (mozilla)
As the only pollinator that can be managed at scale, honeybees play a vital role in sustainable food production, currently farmed in a wide range of systems, from traditional hollow logs to large-scale commercial beekeeping businesses in highly developed agricultural sectors. With increased public awareness of the role that insect pollinators play for food security, there has been a rise in novel technologies marketed to beekeepers, ranging from phone app using machine vision for disease detection to beehive telemetry equipment and even full beekeeping robots.
However, even the most basic of beekeeping technologies, the wooden box hive with movable frames, is not present in all parts of the world, and both prices and return on investment for novel technologies severely limit their accessibility.
Limited accessibility of beekeeping technology creates barriers for the further development of beekeeping industries especially in developing countries which would greatly benefit from the opportunities that can be created through the establishment of honey production sectors. In these environments even the establishment of beehives with movable frames (which allow non-lethal honey harvest) can greatly improve the sustainability of the industry and the quality of the product. However, open-source digital tools could greatly improve productivity, sustainability and market access for honey producer and pollination providers alike.
Through this workshop, we want to explore opportunities for the development of accessible (digital) tools for improved outcomes in diverse beekeeping environments, with a focus on the varied needs of different communities. Issues that could be addressed with these include (but are in no way limited to) disease detection, honey traceability, nectar source / forage definition, honey yield prediction or optimized hive placement.
While we do have some ideas for topics that could be worked on (so that we can guide productive engagement), we greatly appreciate the diversity of perspectives that are brought together through MozFest. We want to engage to gain a better understanding both of where varying layers of existing beekeeping technology can and should be implemented – and which new approaches to supporting beekeepers could be developed.
We also hope to grow the community that is represented by FutureBees NZ (see “After MozFest”).
¿Por qué has elegido ese espacio? ¿Cómo se ajusta tu sesión a la descripción del espacio?:While the bulk of food for human consumption (mainly cereals and livestock production on pasture / grass) is not dependent on (insect) pollination, robust pollinator populations contribute greatly to sustainable food production by securing efficient production of ~90% of plants cultivated for human consumption.
Even though their native range only covers the Old World, honeybees play a major role in global plant-pollinator dynamics. Especially high-value production systems in developing countries with a focus on export (e.g. horticulture in Mexico, focused on export to the US) can have a devastating effect on local ecosystems as they are scaled up, resulting in reduced biodiversity which in turn leads to lower outputs. Cultivation of honeybees for pollination must go hand in hand with targeted efforts to create more self-sustainable systems but can significantly improve financial and environmental sustainability while creating additional job opportunities.
¿Cómo vas a hacer frente si varía el número de participantes en tu sesión? ¿Y si asisten 30 participantes? ¿Y si son 3?:The workshop will be run via zoom, with a prepared shared space (e.g. Miro or Google doc) to enable participation and is expected to start off with a presentation of the different layers of technology currently present in beekeeping, accompanied and followed by engagement with participants ion their own perspective. – Participant engagement will then determine grouping for up to 3 breakout sessions run by the 3 facilitators.
Outcomes from breakout sessions will be “pitched” upon return and discussed. Ideally, the workshop will close with at least one concrete call to action.
¿Qué pasará después del MozFest? Esperamos que muchos esfuerzos y discusiones continúen después de MozFest. Comparte cualquier idea que tengas sobre cómo continuar el trabajo de tu sesión.:This workshop is expected to yield at least one pitch that can be further developed into a call to action for the development of a digital tool that will support beekeepers and / or primary producers dependent on pollination services.
As part of the mission of FutureBees NZ, we seek to build a resource base of Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) which are called upon for individual projects, be it research and development project or individual consulting engagements. We engage with our SMEs through a monthly newsletter as well as through the development of individual projects, and expect to draw interested workshop participants in on both of those layers of engagement.
¿En qué idioma te gustaría realizar tu sesión?:English