Canberra Urban Honey director Carmen Pearce-Brown has dedicated the past six years to helping introduce and mentor new beekeepers in the ACT. She spreads the word that without bees, who cross-pollinate plants helping them grow, many crops and plants would die. “Our view is that beekeeping brings the community together, and it’s a way of promoting sustainability in cities, which is really critical,” Ms Pearce-Brown said. She said urban beekeeping was really taking off in the capital.

“Beekeeping in Canberra is really hard, the environment is harsh, but having access to mentors and people with knowledge of the environment is critical to the success of amateaur beekeeping.” When Slovenian Ambassador Helena Drnovšek Zorko heard about the bee shortage in Canberra, she asked Ms Pearce-Brown to help introduce two hives to the embassy in O’Malley. On Sunday, the public is being welcomed to the grounds of the Slovenian embassy and the Swiss Embassy to celebrate World Bee Day. “We were really concerned about the bee population and the decline of the bee population in Slovenia and around the world,” the ambassador said. “In Slovenia, beekeeping is a way of life. Every third household in Slovenia has a hive.”

At the Slovenian Embassy and with the help of Ms Pearce-Brown, the ambassador said everyone takes part in learning about the hive, the bees and the honey process. “We think it’s quite special and we will keep the honey for special occasions, but we also eat it of course,” she said. May 20 was declared World Bee Day in 2017 by the United Nations. The date holds a special place in the hearts of Slovenians as the day they celebrate the birthday of Slovenian apiarist Anton Janša, the pioneer of modern beekeeping. The Slovenian Embassy in O’Malley will host a traditional honey breakfast, honey jarring and plenty of children’s activities from 9.45am to 1pm. From 1pm, the Embassy of Sweden in Yarralumla will host an afternoon of festivities from 1-4pm. At 5pm the Embassy of Switzerland presents a film about beekeeping at Coombs Theatre at the ANU. The documentary More than Honey will be followed by a panel discussion.