This week, over 200 attendees from across the globe tuned in to the “Seeds of Our Future: The Flight of the Honeybees” virtual agtech conference. The two-day event, which was co-hosted Western Growers Center for Innovation & Technology Director Dennis Donohue and Silicon Valley Forum Executive Director Denyse Cardozo, provided an overview of the declining pollinator population and discussed how to leverage technology such as artificial intelligence, internet of things and big data to solve the problem and hopefully reverse the trend.
Between the panels and keynote addresses, speakers provided a deep analysis on everything from bee technology investment trends to new food innovations that are creating a more sustainable future.
A couple takeaways from the event include the following:
- As climate change, disease, predators and other factors destroy hives around the country, beekeepers are looking to farms managed with regenerative agricultural practices for a more sustainable future for their bees. Methods to protect pollinators and the environment include biodiversity and rebuilding soil health.
- Solutions must be out of the box. An example is urban bee farming, where you create sustainable communities and bee populations by transforming vacant lots into pollinator friendly spaces.
Speakers included numerous Western Growers stakeholders like Bayer and S2G Ventures as well as WGCIT residents including ApisProtect’s Fiona Murphy. For more information on the event, contact Dennis Donohue at (831) 594-4883.