SR 
Talks dedicated to biodiversity and relevant environmental issues, planting honey plants and workshops for children are just some of the activities that Ekonaut, in cooperation with partners, organized on May 20 to mark World Bee Day and World Biodiversity Day.
Anton Janša, a pioneer of modern beekeeping, was born in Slovenia on May 20, 1734. At the initiative of Slovenia, in December 2017, the United Nations recognized this date as World Bee Day. The association and eco-social company Ekonaut, in cooperation with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the Swedish Embassy in Belgrade, marked the World Bee Day and the World Day for the Protection of Biological Diversity on May 20 at the Botanical Garden. This date was also a good occasion to present the preliminary results of the National Environmental Report that the delegation of the Republic of Serbia will present at the "Stockholm +50" Conference, which will be held on June 2 and 3 in the Swedish capital.
As part of the event, two panel discussions were held on the importance of the role of bees and the need for their protection. The panelists pointed out how important it is to educate the public on this topic, because, unfortunately, we are not aware of how much we depend on bees. It was pointed out that pollination is the key process on which the survival of our ecosystem depends. Almost 90% of the world's flowering plants depend on pollination by natural pollinators, and they also affect as much as 75% of the world's crops. As bees directly contribute to the production of the food we consume and the maintenance of biodiversity, with their extinction, the quality and healthy food that we now take for granted would disappear - the panelists pointed out. They also spoke about the importance of protecting bees, which directly affects the solution of the problem of global food supply, as well as the elimination of hunger in developing countries.
At the panel "Bees, More Than Honey," participants included Jovana Bila Dubaić – a biologist, research associate at the Faculty of Biology in Belgrade, Prof. Dr. Mića Mladenović – a retired professor from the Faculty of Agriculture in Belgrade, Dr. Rodoljub Živadinović – president of the Serbian Beekeeping Organizations Alliance (SPOS), while the panel "Ecosocial Responsibility, Coexistence of Bees and People in the City" featured Miljan Peljević – creative hub "Nova Iskra" and "Bee Solutions", Steviša Vujasinović – "Kreativa Unlimited", Ana Simić – the "Center for Experimentation and Urban Studies" CEUS association, and Milja Vuković – activist of the "Wild Belgrade" association. Both panels were moderated by Sabina Kerić – "Ekonaut". During the discussions, special emphasis was given to good practice examples, as well as recommendations on how to improve local biodiversity. Particular attention was devoted to the topic of nurturing and establishing areas with honey plants, as well as the impact of urban beekeeping on local biodiversity. Panelists presented findings from both domestic and international research in the field of bee biology, thereby enlightening attendees about feral honey bees increasingly seen in urban environments, and the challenges faced by beekeepers in Serbia related to climate change and the unregulated use of chemical substances in agriculture.
At the same time, the event was a call for action to help pollinators and bees, a species of insect that has been declared the most important species on the planet due to its ecosystem services. As part of Econaut's "Initiative for Honey Gardens", with the Botanical Garden and the Embassy of Sweden in Belgrade, the planting of 100 seedlings of honey plants in a special part intended for pollinators in the Botanical garden, was organized.
In cooperation with the youth organization EcoHub and WWFa special workshop for children and youth "Meet the bees" was held, where participants learned in an interesting and interactive way about the way of life and behavior of bees and their importance for preserving the entire biological diversity.
On this occasion, Ekonaut presented the second edition of the publication "100 plants for bees and pollinators" (project "BeeConnected", 2019), which allows each individual to offer bees and pollinators their open spaces by planting and nurturing honey plants, thus contributing to local biodiversity. Also, this year's publication was"Introduction to urban garden communities" was presented.”.
