Aleksandra Koliņa, Maja Raemakers and Jessica Girardi during their RestPoll fieldwork of pollinator and vegetation monitoring in Latvia.
May 20th marks World Bee Day, a moment to celebrate the crucial role of bees and other pollinators in supporting both nature and human well-being. More than 75% of global food crops depend — at least in part — on pollinators. These tiny workers not only help produce one out of every three bites of food we eat but are also essential to maintaining resilient ecosystems.
At Baltic Studies Centre (BSC), we are proud to be part of the EU-funded RestPoll project (Restoring Pollinator Habitats Across European Agricultural Landscapes), which brings together researchers, NGOs, ministries, and industry partners from 16 countries. The aim? To design, test, and implement effective strategies to restore pollinator habitats and reverse pollinator decline across Europe. This means restoring diverse, pesticide-free environments, especially in agricultural landscapes, and ensuring that both scientific knowledge and practical experience guide the way. From improving habitat quality to influencing policy, RestPoll promotes biodiversity, ecosystem health, and sustainable land use, and does so through a unique interdisciplinary lens – combining natural and social sciences.
As assistant researchers Maja Raemakers and Jessica Girardi, both involved in RestPoll, highlight: the steep decline of wild pollinators, including bees, hoverflies, and butterflies, is caused by a mix of habitat loss, fragmentation, pesticide use, and climate change. RestPoll's most urgent message? Europe needs a widespread restoration of diverse, connected habitats – especially meadows, which not only provide food but also shelter and nesting grounds for pollinators throughout the year.
RestPoll goes beyond science — it actively involves farmers, landowners, and local communities in developing real-world solutions through Living Labs and participatory methods. These include:
- Reducing pesticide and fertilizer use
- Planting flower strips and native plants
- Providing nesting sites for wild pollinators
- Adopting insect-friendly mowing regimes
Together, we are building a network of restoration areas across Europe, including in the Baltic region. In Latvia, this work is closely linked to GrassLIFE and GrassLIFE2 projects - initiatives focused on restoring and sustainably managing natural grasslands.
Jessica joined the RestPoll project very recently, with her first monitoring round of pollinators and vegetation currently underway. She notes that some of the most pleasant surprises in her fieldwork have been the open and thoughtful conversations with farm owners, who show genuine interest in the pollinator monitoring taking place on their land. "Their willingness to discuss the observations are an added drive for our work within RestPoll project," she says. Maja, who is now assisting with the first round of monitoring this year and has already conducted fieldwork in Latvia last year, reflects on encountering wild bee species there that have become rare or even disappeared in the Netherlands. "I believe this is largely since meadows in Latvia still hold onto more of their ‘natural’ characteristics, particularly in terms of floral diversity," she says. "Observing these differences between countries is fascinating and highlights the potential for sharing knowledge and experiences across Europe within the RestPoll project."
The role of communities
Maja and Jessica also stress the essential role of local communities. While governments and farmers play a central part, meaningful change also happens at the local level – in home gardens, schoolyards, and public parks. Communities can:
- Create pollinator-friendly habitats with wildflowers
- Participate in citizen science monitoring programs
- Organize educational events and workshops
- Influence municipal planning decisions
An inspiring example from Latvia is the Meadow Festival organized by the Latvian Fund for Nature, which brings together education, local products, and hands-on workshops to connect people to the importance of natural grasslands. Demonstration farms such as "Nature farm "Bekas"" are another success story working to enhance plant diversity in ways that support pollinators and broader ecosystems.
However, as both researchers point out, supporting pollinators also means rebalancing – for instance, reducing the density of managed honeybee colonies to ensure wild pollinators have access to sufficient floral resources.
As part of this effort, BSC contributes to developing tools for inclusive stakeholder engagement and co-developing policies that support pollinator-friendly practices. It's about creating long-term, practical solutions that combine science with the lived realities of land users and local communities.
Want to help pollinators thrive?
Even small actions matter — grow native plants, create pollinator-friendly spaces, and follow the work of RestPoll to see how research can support biodiversity in your region.
Learn more at restpoll.eu or follow @RestPoll on social media.