(CONCLUSION)
Bees are one of the best pollinators in the world, making them vital for global food production. Of the 100 crop species that provide 90 per cent of the world’s food, over 70 are pollinated by bees. But pollinators are under threat. The continued decline of bee populations would have disastrous impacts on global agriculture and food security.
According to a UNEP report, some 20,000 flowering plant species upon which many bee species depend for food could be lost over the coming decades without greater conservation efforts. However, if done in harmony with nature, agriculture–one of the biggest drivers of biodiversity loss–can be pollinator friendly, which ultimately helps bees and farmers alike.
To make agriculture bee friendly, farmers can eliminate bee-harming pesticides, plant native plants that provide nectar and pollen throughout the bloom season, and build nesting sites to ensure that bees thrive.
Diversify crops
The world has over 50,000 edible plants. However, just three of them, rice, maize, and wheat, provide over 50 percent of the world’s food energy intake.
Over-reliance on a few crop varieties can make global agricultural systems vulnerable to pests, diseases, climate change and exacerbate soil degradation and water scarcity that will ultimately result in greater food insecurity.
However, by adopting more sustainable agriculture and growing and eating more diverse vegetables, fruits and crops will not only help revive biodiversity, it will also help adapt to climate change, increase resilience and offer more healthy diets.
Note: The planet is experiencing a dangerous decline in nature. One million species are threatened with extinction, soils are turning infertile, and water sources are drying up. The Global Biodiversity Framework–adopted by world leaders in December 2022–sets out to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030. To address the drivers of the nature crisis, UNEP is working with partners to take action in land and seascapes, transform our food systems and close the finance gap for nature.
The UN General Assembly has declared the years 2021 through 2030 the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration Led by UNEP and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN together with the support of partners, it is designed to prevent, halt, and reverse the loss and degradation of ecosystems worldwide. It aims at reviving billions of hectares, covering terrestrial as well as aquatic ecosystems. A global call to action, the UN Decade draws together political support, scientific research and financial muscle to massively scale up restoration. UNEP News