At the start of April, two invitations appeared simultaneously in my facebook newsfeed. One was from a friend (a climate change researcher), the other from Bybi (the Oslo Urban beekeepers association). Though worded slightly differently, it transpired that the events were in fact, one and the same.

In connection with the international climate conference COP21 (December 2015), the Institut Français in Oslo has invited the French artist collective Le Parti Poétique to open the next installation in their artistic, political, environmental, and social project in Oslo. This project, which goes under the name The Honey Bank, among other things aims to produce life, movement and a general mobilisation of the people.

- invitation text

I was intrigued. A honey bank. What might it entail, and how would it work?

On a cold Sunday in March, a group of well-wrapped up bumblebee enthusiasts met up at the Water of Leith Conservation Trust Visitor Centre for the first BeeScene Bumblebee Survey of the season. This citizen science survey was organised by the Scottish Waterways Trust. The findings will be used for the Bumblebee Conservation Trust’s national Beewalk database, and will provide useful information on the health of the canal environment.

We walked down a mile-long stretch of the Union Canal in Edinburgh armed with a Guide to Bees of Britain, and under the expert guidance of Stephen and Willie we scanned the greenery on the side of the canal for signs of bumblebee life. At this time of year it is only likely that queen bumblebees would be seen. Each year only bumblebee queens survive into winter, and in early spring they come out of hibernation and collect pollen and nectar to feed a new brood of worker bees. We didn’t see any queens – perhaps it was too cold, but Anna (herbalist and forager at Floramedica) showed us a surprising variety of wild plants that will provide forage for bumblebees and other insects later in the year.

THE HONEY BANK

Learning to Read the Urban Landscape