Following a years-long grassroots effort, the Vancouver City Council officially adopted a resolution on April 7 designating the city as a Bee City USA—part of a national movement to protect pollinators and promote biodiversity.
The Vancouver Bee Project was formed in 2021 to educate the public and advocate for pollinator-friendly policies and habitats. From the beginning, one of the group’s primary missions was to help Vancouver become a Bee City.
“It’s great,” said Kyle Roslund, board chair of the Vancouver Bee Project, the volunteer-led nonprofit behind much of the advocacy work. “I am very, very excited and, and pleased that the city has decided to go in that direction.”
Early on, the organization began hosting public meetings to raise awareness and rally support for Bee City designation. Members organized public meetings and eventually helped form a pollinator subcommittee under the city’s Urban Forestry Commission.
“We try and encourage people to educate themselves about native pollinators and native plants,” Roslund said. “And provide resources and workshops around those things.”
Vancouver’s growing efforts, including native plantings by the city’s Nature Spaces team and an integrated pest management plan, laid the groundwork for meeting the Bee City USA criteria. The designation also requires ongoing education, annual events, a dedicated website and commitments to include pollinator-friendly considerations in future city planning.
“In many ways, becoming a Bee City was really just a celebration of a lot of the activities that are already happening around the city,” Roslund said.
The Vancouver Bee Project is organizing a community Pollinator Festival from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, June 21 at Marshall Park, 1069 E McLoughlin Blvd to celebrate the new designation.
“We’re gonna have a great day-long festival with vendors and food and speakers, environmental speakers, garden tours, all kinds of fun stuff,” Roslund said.
The event will feature meadow tours, an eco-art exhibit, educational booths, and key speakers, including Dr. Robert Michael Pyle, founder of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. Full details are available at pollinatorfestival.org.
Looking ahead, the Vancouver Bee Project hopes to support similar efforts beyond city limits.
“We’re countywide, we’ll support folks anywhere who want to do this,” Roslund said. “Ideally, we’d love to see the whole county be a Bee City.”
In the meantime, Roslund emphasized that locals can make a difference for pollinators and that it doesn’t have to be complicated.
“Every little bit helps,” he said. “Even if you don’t have a yard and you are a renter, you can put pots out on a patio, and just a few native plants can go a long way.”
He recommends using locally sourced plants, reducing pesticide use, and advocating for pollinator-friendly policies. The City of Portland’s list of native plants can be found at portland.gov/bps/planning/environ-planning/portland-plant-list.
“Mason bees are really excellent, accessible, relatively inexpensive bees that people can keep in their own homes and yards,” Roslund said. “But yeah, native plants, that’s really where it’s at.”
