Sandra
Hughes with Franco Santoro at Findhorn
Foundation, Scotland |
Hello, I'm Sandra Hughes of Gateway Performance
Productions based in Atlanta, Georgia. Thank you
for visiting The Bee Project website.
In January 2006 I had the opportunity to perform
and teach for the Findhorn Foundation in
Scotland. Findhorn is a spiritual community,
ecovillage, and an international centre for
holistic education that strives to help unfold a
new human consciousness and create a positive
and sustainable future. It's also a
non-governmental organization associated with
the United Nations Department of Public
Information and takes an active role at UN
headquarters in New York, especially in the
areas of education, sustainability, and values.
While there I also attended a workshop at
Findhorn's Cluny College called "Manifesting
Honorable Intentions - Healing the Planet from
the Inside Out." This workshop changed my life.
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I discovered
that the honeybees on our planet are dying in
massive numbers. These tiny, ten million year
old insects are essential to human and planetary
life. I am ever thankful to Findhorn faculty
member Franco Santoro and Findhorn Beekeeper
Sverre Koxvold for all they shared and taught
me. I’m also deeply grateful to the Ford
Foundation and Alternate ROOTS for the
professional development grant that made this
experience possible. (Learn
more about my Findhorn experience.)
Colony Collapse
Disorder
The most recent threat to the honeybee is Colony
Collapse Disorder. CCD occurs when a hive's
inhabitants suddenly
disappear, leaving only queens, eggs and a few
immature workers to die. More than half the
states in the U.S. are affected. As many as 90%
of the hives owned by commercial beekeepers to
pollinate crops are no longer viable. This
dramatic development places the well-being of
the honeybee and our food sources and supply at
the center of human and planetary survival.
My response to this situation as an artist and
citizen is to work to develop
programming that
addresses this environmental, ecological, global
issue. It was also to publish a website with a
collection of news and scientific articles that
presents the facts of this global crisis.
How You Can Help!
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