Making a buzz about bees

There’s barely a week that goes by when bees aren’t featured in the papers, on the TV or in parliamentary proceedings. This week was no exception, with one key difference; Marylyn Haines Evans, Chair of the NFWI Public Affairs Committee was up in front of the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee, giving evidence on their future survival.

The inquiry presented an opportunity for the 16 MPs who sit on the Environmental Audit Committee to question individuals from across the scientific, charitable, business and farming community about the strengths and weaknesses of the draft National Pollinator Strategy (the government’s ‘Bee Action Plan’), investigate how concerns are addressed and aspirations are met, and feed back to government on the issue.

Marylyn gave evidence alongside the National Farmers Union, Friends of the Earth, and civil servants from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). Whilst welcoming the strategy and Defra’s leadership developing it, Marylyn outlined the NFWI’s unease that the strategy was too reliant on voluntary measures, and fell short on issues such as planning, monitoring and insecticide use. Defra will be reflecting on the Committee’s findings before the final strategy is published this autumn, and we hope that they give these the due consideration that’s needed.

Over the last few months the NFWI has received thousands of postcards from WI members telling Lord de Mauley, the Minister with responsibility for pollinators, just why bees are important to them. Thanks to the five thousand WI members who have written to us, following the Environmental Audit Committee, Marylyn, alongside former Vice Chair of Public Affairs Committee, Sybil Graham, was invited to meet with the Minister to hand-over the postcards, and crucially, share the NFWI’s concerns about the National Pollinator Strategy directly with the Minister.

The Minister was open to our concerns, and was keen to explore how Defra and the WI can work together to ensure our pollinator populations revive and thrive. The NFWI will of course work with Defra in order to protect our bees and pollinators, but ultimately we believe that there is a huge role for government to implement policies that go above and beyond existing measures if they are to ensure the strategy is fit for purpose and the long-term. WI members have made their views on bee decline explicitly clear, but we are still not convinced that the government’s strategy is as strong as it can be. We will continue to make the case for a strong Bee Action Plan. The NPS provides a unique opportunity to address the multiple challenges our precious pollinators face, let’s not let them down.

Time to Talk

The journey from the WI’s HQ in London to Leeds for our Annual Meeting took around 2 hours from King’s Cross. But the journey for our Public Affairs team has actually taken a lot longer…

Back on 16 September 2013, 51 ideas for a new campaign had been submitted our Public Affairs team by WI members. These ideas, called resolutions, were on all manner of topics from state pensions to FGM and the regulation of funeral directors. From that point onwards, each idea was subject to a rigorous shortlisting process and the successful ones were put to members for their votes. By the time we got to the First Direct Arena on 7 June 2014, one idea was left standing. It was up to WI members to hear the arguments one last time and decide whether the WI should throw its weight behind this campaign.

And they did: the resolution passed with a 98% majority. The newest mandate in the WI’s 99-hear history reads:

The NFWI notes that three people die every day whilst waiting for an organ transplant. We call on every member of the WI to make their wishes regarding organ donation known, and to encourage their families and friends, and members of their local communities to do likewise.

Laureen Walker from Standon and Cotes WI proposed the idea, which was then seconded by Barbara Hidson of Codsall Wood WI. Sally Johnson, Director at NHS Blood and Transplant spoke for the resolution, while Georgia Testa, Lecturer in medical ethics at Leeds University, set out points for the opposition. Their quotes will give you a flavour of the debate:

“The major barrier to getting consent from families for transplants is that they often have no idea of the wishes of their relative…Statistics show that when families know that their loved ones want to donate their consent rate is 88%. When they don’t know it is only 46%.” Laureen Walker

“Will more open discussion translate the approval rate into numbers actually on the Organ Donation Register? There will still be people who just don’t get around to it, even if there is a climate in which family and friends discuss donation more openly and frequently.” Georgia Testa

“Letting families know what you've decided makes it much easier for them to support your decision to be a donor. The WI is renowned for achieving results. This resolution is down to you.”Barbara Hidson

“Every day, some one in this country who could be a donor dies, and their relatives, in the midst of grief, shock and distress, are asked to allow their loved one's organs to be used to save the life of someone they don't know. Imagine it was your relative: what would you say? If you hadn't talked about organ donation as a family, then it's quite likely you'd say no. You might think it was the safer option. You might come to regret that decision later. It would be so much easier if you knew what your relative wanted: if they wanted to be a donor then you could take comfort from that decision and be proud of them.

“We hope everyone in the UK will be proud to donate their organs, when and if they can. But we know this won't happen without some inspirational leadership. We are asking you to provide this leadership: to talk to your families, your friends and your communities so that no family is left to guess what their loved one wanted.” Sally Johnson

Many WI members spoke of their own donation stories, sharing experiences of being recipients of kidneys and corneas, or being a member of a family who was asked about donating the organs of a loved one. Others mentioned living wills and old donation wallet cards as ways to formalise family consent and get families talking. It was a thought-provoking and emotional debate.

So what happens now?

The NFWI Public Affairs team will begin working on a campaign based on the mandate so watch this space for updates on Time to Talk about Organ Donation.

The best thing about the WI resolutions process? Once we’ve got a mandate, we’ve got it forever. So in that way, the journey for a resolution never ends.

Memory Matters Day: DFWI Making a Difference

Guest blog by Heather Penwarden, President of Awliscombe WI and Vice- Chairman of DFWI’s International and Public Affairs Committee, as well as an Alzheimer’s Society Dementia Champion

On Friday 16th May, as part of National Dementia Awareness Week, Devon Federation of WI’s held a “Memory Matters” day in Exeter with Angela Rippon as the key note speaker. The event attracted 150 WI members representing 50 WIs from around the county.

I have wanted to do something like this for a while and I am absolutely delighted with the response from our members. With one in three of us likely to know someone who has dementia this is an issue that our society cannot afford to ignore. Raising the levels of awareness of what it is like to live with dementia is key to changing negative attitudes towards the disease and to inspiring people to act positively to take action and make a difference.

Devon is predominately a rural community where social isolation can be a big problem particularly if you are living with dementia. With 240 Institutes and over 7000 members DFWI is right in the heart of nearly every village in the county. Who is in a better place to spread the word about dementia awareness? If all 7000 members take just once action after today what an amazing difference that will make.

The day started with Dr Stephen Pearson, Consultant Psychiatrist and South West Peninsula Research, explaining about the different sorts of dementia, followed by presentations from people who are already making a difference to the lives of those living with dementia in Devon.
David Light cared for his wife throughout the progression of her dementia, and from his own experiences of feeling uninformed and isolated as a carer he has gone on to take the lead in setting up over 40 memory cafes in Devon. Rachel Johnstone talked about the valuable work she is doing in linking Sidmouth Memory café and students at the local community college; and Norman McNamara spoke of his experience living with Lewy Body dementia and of his amazing work with the Torbay Dementia Action Alliance.

Angela Rippon took the floor in the afternoon, and spoke with great passion of her work as co-chair of the Prime Minister’s Dementia friendly Group and Ambassador for the Alzheimer’s Society. Angela then led a lively and enthusiastic debate on “what members of the DFWI can do to make a difference to the lives of people living with dementia.”

Members pledged to do the following:

Learn a bit more about what it is like to live with dementia

Become an Alzheimer’s Society Dementia Friend

Seek out a Dementia Friends Awareness Session

Invite a Dementia Champion to come and lead a session at our WI

Volunteer at our local Memory Café

WI’s to adopt a Memory Café and offer support – time, skills and fundraising

If there is no local Memory Café set one up perhaps by joining forces with your local Rotary Club

Offer to volunteer at local hospital or care home

Do as you would be done by – treat everyone with equal respect

See the person and not the dementia

Make up your own memory book and memory box

Help someone else make a memory book and memory box

Make digital recording of your memories, perhaps as a joint project with your grandchildren

Musical memory lasts the longest. Load a personal play list of your favourite music onto an iPod, help someone living with dementia do the same

Make a fidget quilt

Hold a Dementia awareness coffee morning or vintage tea party

Say someone is “Living with dementia” not “Suffering from dementia”

If you are not already a Dementia Friend, and would like to learn more about how you and your WI can make a difference in your community, please see the following link:

https://www.dementiafriends.org.uk/

Dementia Friends: Huntingdon & Peterborough WI members take up the challenge

Today's guest post is from Anna Bradley-Dorman, a WI member from Huntingdon and Peterborough Federation

In September I was lucky enough to attend the NFWIs ‘Caring Challenge Conference’ with a fellow trustee, Phyllis Brookes, at which we heard about the challenge of dealing with an increasingly aging population and the growing numbers of people living with dementia. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t know someone who is affected by dementia. We often hear about the devastating effects of dementia but forget that these people are part of our community and it is up to all of us to ensure that they can continue to be a part of it.

My personal association with dementia started nearly forty years ago when my beloved grandma turned into a bad tempered, violent woman. Back then no-one could explain it to me. I just thought it was what happened when you got old – but it isn’t. Not all old people are going to get dementia and not all people who have dementia are old. This is just one of the many misconceptions surrounding this disease that needs to be rectified. Dementia needs to be talked about, not swept under the carpet. We need to become a Dementia Friendly Society – this includes individuals, organisations and government. Individuals can become Dementia Friends, organisations can become Dementia Friendly and areas can become Dementia Friendly Communities.

What is a ‘Dementia Friend’ I hear you say? Back in March 2012 the Prime Minister set out his challenge on dementia and commitment to deliver improvements in care and research by 2015. The National Federation of Women’s Institutes (NFWI) signed up to be part of the Prime Minister's challenge and joined a Dementia Friendly Communities Group which has been tasked with finding out what can be done to make our communities more dementia friendly. To help build dementia friendly communities, the NFWI is backing the Dementia Friends initiative, helping to create a network of a million dementia friends by 2015. The intention is to build public awareness of dementia and the small things that people can do that can make a difference to people living with dementia, providing a helping hand to enable them to go about their daily lives and feel included in the local community.

The other main focus of the conference was the effect our aging population is having on carers. More and more of us will have to care for a loved one in the future. Many carers are left to cope with little support. Quite often the focus is, naturally, on the person living with dementia but we forget that the carer needs support too. Carers need to be provided with necessary help and support early on – financial, social and medical. They are often faced with trying to navigate through the baffling, uncoordinated realm of social and health care systems with little or no help. They frequently feel that their opinions are not valid when they are the person who knows their relative the best. I have witnessed first-hand the difficulties carers face as I watched both my mother-in-law and father care for spouses with dementia.

So we went back to our federation armed with statistics, personal stories and information. It was obvious we needed to do something but what? We realised that we could talk about it until we were blue in the face but we really wanted our response to be practical. We could blind our members with science and facts but apart from increasing awareness what would it achieve? Eventually we came up with a plan. I am fortunate to work as an administrator for a local community development charity that works with many different organisations. Three organisations came to mind and were invited to come along to our Federation Centre on the 10 May 2014. At this session, in direct response to the ‘Caring Challenge’, the audience heard from speakers, each of whom were tackling this issue head-on.

James Nicol is a Dementia Champion who has received training and volunteered to recruit people to become Dementia Friends. James is passionate about this project and gave an interactive presentation after which several members signed up to become a ‘Dementia Friend’. He spoke about how Dementia Friends is giving people an understanding of dementia difference to people living with dementia – from helping someone find the right bus to spreading the word about the disease to ensure those living locally are supported and can live well with dementia.

Linda Collumbell from Carers Trust Cambridgeshire described an innovative pilot scheme called ‘The Better Health Network’ which has been designed to improve the support provided to elderly people and those with long term conditions, by co-ordinating the services being delivered by charities and voluntary organisations. The scheme offers a one-off assessment which is then used to identify the relevant support. Key to the pilot is the close coordination of Social Services and NHS services with those provided by charities and voluntary groups.

Lauren Stonebridge from The Great Fen and Barbara Cobb from Ramsey Rural Museum spoke about a joint project to deliver reminiscence sessions using memory boxes. Reminiscing can be a useful tool for people with memory problems to help improve their self-esteem, personal identity and increase their socialisation. The memory boxes cover many different life topics and contain a variety of objects which are used to trigger memories and generate discussion.

At the end of the morning the audience went home with practical things they could do, a greater understanding and useful information. At the moment we can’t prevent this disease but there are ways of making life a little easier for those living with dementia and the people who care for them.

Find out how to become a Dementia Friend here

A Bee in My Bonnet!

The latest bee blog from Martha Kearney. Follow the seasons and gain a unique insight into the world of beekeeping with Martha Kearney, BBC journalist and beekeeping enthusiast. Martha has raised awareness of the honeybee's plight, notably through the BBC 4 series “The Wonder of Bees”.

I was asked to give a speech recently in my new role as President of the Classical Association and decided to pick the theme of beekeeping in antiquity with the title Mellis Caelestia Dona, the heavenly gift of honey. That comes from the most famous bee poem of all time - Virgil's Fourth Georgic. As well as being beautiful verse, this also contains remarkably good beekeeping advice including the best plants to have nearby, to use smoke to calm the bees and the need for a source of water. He does get a bit nutty about producing bees from the carcass of a dead ox which was known as Bugonia in ancient times. If you've ever looked at a golden syrup tin you'll get the idea. They used the image of a dead lion from a Biblical story. Nonsense of course as honey bees hate carrion.

Bees were popular from the most ancient of times. There are pictures of beekeepers in Egyptian temples from four and a half thousand years ago.

And take a look at this beautiful brooch from the Minoan civilisation on Crete.

Virgil was only one of several ancient authors who wrote on bees - Homer, Hesiod, Aristotle, Cato, Pliny, Columella and Varro for whom the nasty varroa mite is named. I kept my other half informed about my research and told him one day that I had found a new word - mellarius which means beekeeping slave. "I already know the meaning of that word" he said drily.

You can see us both in action in episode 3 of The Wonder of Bees on BBC4 at 8pm on Monday night. The earlier ones are on the iplayer. This time we are extracting honey in a very much Don't Try This at Home way. I also meet a natural beekeeper who lets her bees swarm and doesn't use chemicals to treat for varroa. You can find more information here.

But many beekeepers will disagree with that approach. There is extensive information on the British Beekeepers association site here.

They also run a scheme called Adopt a Beehive for people who want to support bees with keeping them themselves.

If you have any thoughts on how the government can help honeybees and other pollinating insects, then there is still time to contribute to the consultation on the National Pollinator Strategy which ends on May 2nd. For more information on how the NFWI and WI members are getting involved in the campaign, and for details on how you can help, please visit the website.

If you have any thoughts on my blog or bees, do get in touch via Twitter @MarthaKearney

To read more from Martha, please visit her bee blog on the NFWI website.

A Bee in My Bonnet!

The latest bee blog from Martha Kearney. Follow the seasons and gain a unique insight into the world of beekeeping with Martha Kearney, BBC journalist and beekeeping enthusiast. Martha has raised awareness of the honeybee's plight, notably through the BBC 4 series “The Wonder of Bees”.

My hives have now truly become Bee List Celebrities. This weekend the society magazine Tatler came to photograph them for their feature called Pet of the Month.

I am not too sure about the lineage of my bees but Apis Mellifera does have a noble heritage. The Barberini family in Rome had a bee as their emblem. Napoleon picked one as the symbol of his grandiose coronation.

The reason Tatler was interested is because my TV series The Wonder of Bees begins on Monday April 14th, the first of four about the ups and downs of beekeeping in the course of a year. I thought we were doomed from the outset as it was so cold last year.

Under the expert eyes of John Everett, a master beekeeper from Norfolk, I was taught many new aspects of beekeeping from spotting disease to seeing a baby bee being born.

See video clip here

I also became much better at spotting the queen but I still find it very difficult to see eggs which are like tiny white threads in the hexagonal cells. John also showed me a way of controlling swarms but I'm not sure I am ready to follow suit. It involves clipping the queen's wings.

See video clip here

So did we succeed against all the problems of the weather and produce a jar of wildflower honey? Stay tuned......

You can find more information on the Facebook page The Wonder of Bees or on Twitter @wonderofbees

For related newspaper coverage see:

The Independent; To bee or not to bee

The Telegraph; Archbishop of Canterbury - I talked to the bees

The Financial Times; Martha Kearney's bee list celebrities

Martha Kearney's full Bee Blog is available to view on the NFWI website here.

"Only one of my five children has ever had a banana"

Abbie Traylerr-Smith/Oxfam
“Since the snows melted last month Yazmik Josephyan has made a daily two hour trek into the mountains to go foraging for Mandak.”

In 2012, the NFWI launched a programme of work on food security, the WI Great Food Debate, with the aim of opening up a public conversation on how to feed an ever increasing population with finite land and resources. Since that time, federations and WIs up and down the country have held debates exploring the issue and investigating solutions. This year, we at Norfolk Federation decided to base our annual International Women's Day celebration on the theme of ‘Shared Earth, Common Ground’ to scrutinise some of these issues further. Norfolk is the home to many experts on this topic, so we were not short of specialist input, and we had plenty to talk about. Were the answers Global or Local? Organic or GM? We needed a conversation.

Wendy Harwood of The John Innes Centre (JIC), an independent international centre of excellence in plant science and microbiology, started the debate. She questioned whether, in light of technological advances in genetic modification (GM), we should be reconsidering the way we approach the production and regulation of GM foods. Peter Melchett, Policy Director at the Soil Association and Norfolk organic farmer, made it clear to us what our choices are as individuals in a world that already has enough food to feed a growing population, but not always in the right place. He explained that we all need to change our diet, and reduce the level of empty calories and cheap, intensively reared meat that we all consume. He highlighted the benefits of organic farming that include the potential of a lower carbon footprint and a closed system in which farmers, particularly in the less developed world, are not reliant on outside forces to produce their food.

We continued the conversation in workshop sessions, which allowed us to explore a number of different perspectives. Should we eat seasonally and avoid vegetables being flown in from Kenya, freeing Kenyan women to grow food for their own families? Or do Kenyan women want jobs to earn money, send their children to school, move to the towns and shop at their convenience in the local supermarket? It was good to hear the debate between Norfolk organic gardeners and those who had travelled to East Africa and had spoken to the women in question. Another discussion was the management of overseas aid. Was it right that money for food aid given to Egypt may have been used to irrigate the desert so that we in the western world could buy new potatoes at Christmas? Once again, global food issues are inextricably linked with local consumption.

Alejandro Chaskielberg/Oxfam
Oxfam beneficiary Tioko Korima, 20, waters the vegetables she is growing in her kitchen garden

Later Martyn Davey from Easton & Otley College explained why “Horticulture Matters” and Grant Habershon, Project Manager with Norwich Food Bank, described how many families in Norwich end up going hungry when a sudden crisis such as bereavement, redundancy or illness, leaves them unable to feed themselves or their families. Benefit delay was highlighted as a particular problem, and even families who are coping well can find themselves struggling in August, when free school meals are not available. Food banks are increasingly plugging the gaps and Norwich Food Bank is no exception; it expects to feed more than 7,000 people this year and launched its first Lunch Club in August 2013. There was an opportunity to catch up on a Channel 4 documentary featuring some of the children it has helped.

For our final panel session, the speakers were joined by Christine Hill from the NFU and Young Farmers Club, and Simon Wright MP. The discussion was wide ranging, but it proved hard to come up with conclusive answers. Could GM co-exist with organic principles? Should the debate be so polarised? The rise in obesity goes hand in hand with economic development, but what causes famine? Is it the force of nature, or economic, or political? The management of soil and water is critical, but not always under the full control of the local farmers. The conversation is clearly a complicated one, and this was reflected in the ensuing discussion. As one member said, “Action? The problem is where to start. Probably reviewing the compost and looking at the politics behind issues of distribution though we'll see lots of food for thought”.

But it did become clear that many participants left with ideas that they felt they could pursue locally. The last words go to them:

“I thought the day was very good, interesting and thought provoking, I have never been moved to tears before but those two children on the food bank video started my tears and I shall now try to encourage my WI and others to collect and help in the Swaffham area.”

In fact many of those who thought they would take action wanted to “spread the word regarding excellent work of food banks and Lunch Clubs”.

In general, several members said that they “Will share with our local WI” and “Hopefully my WI will become more informed and then action to follow. Perhaps set up our own food collection point for the local food bank”.

Others said they would “find out more about the debate concerning organic and GM”… “Eat less meat” … “Grow more of my own food” … “Will waste less, compost more and consider an allotment. Will spread the word” … “Take more interest in sustainable food, seasonal food and the wonder of nature's bounty.”

Are the answers Global or Local? Organic or GM? We needed to start the conversation.

Supplied by Norwich City Council

This post has been written by Mary Dorrell from Barford, Wramplingham & District WI in Norfolk Federation. Mary sits on the NFWI Public Affairs Committee as a Federation Representative.