Bloomington is officially a Bee City USA member, Bloomington Parks and Recreation announced on Facebook on Jan. 20.
Bee City USA is an initiative of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, a nonprofit devoted to the conservation of insects, that provides a framework for cities to create habitats for pollinators like native bees and butterflies.
Members of Bee City USA must create a Bee City committee, a pollinator conservation event, signage and a website about Bee City while working to enhance pollinator habitat on public or private land and reducing pesticides, National Coordinator of Bee City USA Laura Rost said.
A recent study discovered one-fifth of pollinator species in the U.S are at risk of extinction. Bees were found to be the most vulnerable insect, with 34.7% of 472 bee species assessed determined at risk. Pollinators are also responsible for pollinating 35% of the world’s food crops, according to U.S Department of Agriculture.
“Our sort of larger ecosystem is reliant on pollination and on pollinators,” Shannon Gayk, a Bloomington Environmental Commission member and IU professor, said. “Thinking systemically, they're so tiny and they’re often invisible to us, but they're absolutely essential to the larger system, and so we need to be thinking about all of the elements of the ecosystem.”
Bloomington’s Environmental Commisson plans to combine current city efforts and create a citywide plan to decrease pesticide use, Gayk said.
Gayk said the Environmental Commission, a group of Bloomington citizens advising the government on environmental policy, spearheaded this effort in order to recognize the environmental work Bloomington already does, including prohibiting developers from planting invasive species and encouraging native plants.
“It's a way to make official our commitment to native species and pollinators that we've had for a long time, but it makes it very clear that this is something we're going to commit to for the future, and it holds us accountable to that as well,” Gayk said.
Bee City aims to encourage action, partnered with education, to help communities learn about the threats posed to bees in Indiana.
The largest threats are habitat loss, pesticide use, diseases, invasive species and climate change, Rost said.
“It's kind of described as death by a 1,000 cuts,” Rost said.
Bee City USA has completed at least 9,532 habitat projects since 2019 and partnered with 252 cities since its founding in 2012. These projects focus on creating more habitat space for native bees through leaving dead leaves in lawns and planting native plants, Rost said.
“The idea with this whole program is we're looking for progress, not perfection,” Rost said. “So no matter where you are, we can always improve. There's always something a community can do to be more pollinator friendly.”
Bloomington will join Avon, Columbus and Evansville as Bee Cities in Indiana. Additionally, IU Bloomington received a Bee Campus certification in April 2025, following IU Indianapolis and IU Kokomo. Gayk said the IU Office of Sustainability and Bloomington hope to work together on their goals for creating pollinator habitats in the future.
“One of the ongoing conversations at IU is, you know, we have a lot of lawn at IU, and it's part of what gives it its collegiate feeling,” Gayk said. “But what if some of it became meadow, those sorts of things?”
For those interested in learning about pollinators, Gayk suggested visiting IU’s Office of Sustainability or volunteering with the city. Bloomington also has information about Bee City USA on its city website.
“It's, like, kind of uplifting because a lot of environmental issues can really feel so overwhelming,” Rost said, “but with pollinator conservation, it's something you can do any day, no matter where you live.”
