A
Collaborative
Rotary Project

Here’s How to Join

What is Operation Pollination?

Operation Pollination is an inclusive partnership project initiated by announcing a simple POLLINATOR RESOLUTION.

The project is achieved by recruiting a diverse array of partners to engage in pollinator habitat restoration or education activities by signing a simple POLLINATOR PLEDGE form.

Any organization can get involved in Operation Pollination and it doesn’t cost anything to join the cause, aside from the time and resources you devote to achieving your pollinator project.  If you need guidance or advice, please contact us.

Our Purpose

Operation Pollination recognizes the importance of pollinator habitat both restored and maintained on public and private lands.  Through collaboration and outreach, an interconnected mosaic of pollinator habitat interspersed between public and private land will be developed to stabilize and/or increase populations of pollinator species throughout your project area.

In June of 2020 the Rotary International Board of Directors and the The Rotary Foundation Trustees added “supporting the environment” as the 7th Area of Focus.  The Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group (ESRAG) provided both the documentation and the leadership in this effort, and is a partner in Operation Pollination, embracing the effort as an ESRAG Project.

just THREE

Easy Steps to
Get Involved!

Develop Your Own Pollinator Resolution
Enlist Partners to Sign a Pollinator Pledge
These partners can be large or small, for profit or not-for-profit, government or non-government.
Put partner names on the back of your Resolution
Obtain Widespread Media Attention about your Operation Pollination Project.

Why get involved?

Pollinators around the world are in steep decline.  This decline is so much more than a national conservation issue.  It is a global conservation issue and priority project.  Causes of pollinator decline include habitat loss, a changing environment, pesticides, and parasites.  While some of the solutions to pollinator decline require government action, many do not.  That’s where Rotary comes in.  With more than one million Rotarians across the globe, can you imagine the significant impact that Rotary clubs can have on improving local pollinator habitat?  The project described in this web site, Operation Pollination, will allow you and your club to easily get involved in a “make a difference” pollinator project.

How can you get involved?

Leaders and partners are needed to join this effort now.  Pollinators are declining.  Please don’t wait to take positive action.  Now is the time for you and your organization or business to get involved.  If you are with a Rotary District or Club, the very first step is to identify the position in your club that appropriately takes this project on.  It might be your Rotary Foundation board position, the community service committee, whomever you see as the appropriate champion.  Then just follow the Three Easy Steps listed above to join the Operation Pollination project.  If you are not a Rotarian, you can still get involved. Decide who your leader is and just follow the Three Easy Steps.  Please contact us with any questions you have.  We are happy to help you step forth on your Operation Pollination journey.

Need a Project?

Create a community pollinator garden; partner with your schools to create an education program; encourage members to plant pollinator–friendly plants in their homes and work space; have someone speak to your club about the issue; raise funds to support habitat restoration.

Meet the Pollinators

There are many different pollinator species located throughout the United States and the world.  Bees, wasps, ants, butterflies, moths, beetles, flies — even some birds and bats! — pollinate flowers. Everyone can and should be involved in this environmental issue affecting the whole planet. Pick a pollinator or pollinators to emphasize and begin your project today!

Why are pollinators important?

  • Do you like to eat?

    One out of every three bites of food you eat exists because of the efforts of pollinators, including many fruits, vegetables, and seeds. Pollinators not only are necessary for our own food, but support the food and habitat of animals.

  • Do you like clean air?

    Healthy ecosystems depend on pollinators. About 90 percent of all the flowering plants on earth are pollinated by insects and animals! — plants which help stabilize our soils, clean our air, supply oxygen, and support wildlife.

  • Do you want a healthy economy?

    In the United States alone, pollination by honey bees contributed to over $19 billion of crop production in 2010, while pollination by other insect pollinators contributed to nearly $10 billion of crop production.