Pollinators take spotlight at the NAPPC 2022 Conference [Video]

From Plant Press, Vol. 26, No. 1, January 2023.

The 22^nd Annual International Conference of the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC) was held at the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) on 18-20 October 2022. NAPPC's mission is to encourage the health of resident and migratory pollinating animals and the plants they service in North America. Co-hosted by Pollinator Partnership, the meeting brought together NAPPC partners in-person and virtually from throughout North America and beyond.

The NAPPC Conference included keynote speakers, member updates, research reports, and task force breakout sessions. Task Forces are cross-discipline, short-term, project-oriented groupings designed to accomplish specific tasks. Since 1997, the 170+ members of NAPPC have made advancements for pollinators, people, and the planet.

The conference began with an award reception at the U.S. Botanic Garden on the evening of October 18. Seven awards were handed to pollinator advocates, farmer-ranchers, roadside managers, and electric power companies. By recognizing individuals and organizations that have contributed significantly to the promotion and conservation of pollinator species in Canada, the U.S., and Mexico, NAPPC aims to encourage their activities and inspire future actions in support of pollinators.

The conference at NMNH kicked off on October 19 with presentations from six keynote speakers, covering topics related to the effects of parasites, pesticides, and climate change on pollinators, farmland lessons, sustainability, and a special focus on lepidoptera.

Video stills from two keynote presentations
Left: Sammy Ramsey speaks about the "Pollinator pandemic: the overlooked role of parasites in honey bee health."
Right: Bruce Stein speaks on “Pollinators and climate change: preparing for accelerating ecological transformations.”

After the keynote talks, NAPPC Task Forces presented their results from the previous year and then gathered to make plans for the coming year. The Task Forces are made up of diverse, interested parties who work to accomplish specific pollinator-related tasks. This year, the ten Task Forces are Bee Friendly Farming, Climate Change and Pollinators, Honey Bee Health, Imperiled Bombus Conservation, Lepidoptera, Pollinator Communications, Pesticide Education, Pollinator Habitat Installations, Pollinators on Managed Lands, and North American Collaboration.

An optional NMNH field trip preceded the conference on October 18. Organized by Gary Krupnick (Smithsonian’s Department of Botany), the field trip included behind-the-scenes tours of research departments and their collections, including the Departments of Botany, Entomology, Vertebrate Zoology (birds and mammals), and Paleobiology, as well as a guided tour of the rare book collection of the Joseph F. Cullman 3^rd Library of Natural History. The 147+ million objects and specimens at NMNH are endured for future scientific research and public enjoyment. The collections have been acquired and preserved to serve the Smithsonian’s mission to increase knowledge.

As the U.S. Vice Chair of the NAPPC Steering Committee, Gary Krupnick worked with Kelly Bills and Reed Levers (Pollinator Partnership) to organize and host the conference. Krupnick also co-chairs the climate change task force, which is tasked with devising methods to educate the public on the effects of climate change on plants and pollinators and ways to mitigate these effects.

The conference attracted close to 180 people virtually and in-person combined. All keynote speaker presentations and the opening remarks were recorded and are available for viewing on the NAPPC website and on YouTube.

Video recording of the opening remarks and the keynote speakers at the 22^nd Annual International Conference of the North American Pollinator Protection Campaign (NAPPC):