Pollinator garden for Bathurst campus

A team in Charles Sturt’s School of Business, led by Senior Lecturer in Marketing, Dr Felicity Small, secured a Sustainability at Charles Sturt grant to create a ‘pollinator garden’, a ‘B&B (Bed and Breakfast) for birds, bees, butterflies and biodiversity, on our Bathurst campus. Our staff and local community volunteers were invited to participate in a working bee to help establish the garden in October 2021.

“There is a general decline of pollinators around the world and in Australia,” Dr Small said.

“It’s not just bees that are pollinators, it’s also birds, butterflies and other insect pollinators, so we need to act urgently to address the decline.

“Most people aren’t aware that pollinators are ‘connected’ to one-in-three bites of what people eat, and they are extremely important for soil and water health, and are the basis of the ecosystem and biodiversity.”

The pollinator garden will provide much needed rest and revival for pollinators, which are experiencing alarming population declines, endangering biodiversity, crop yields, and the food supply.

The good news is that recent studies have shown that if plants are carefully selected and promoted, urban areas can be ‘hotspots’ for biodiversity.

Educational material is emerging from the project, including a video, radio interviews and podcasts, and signage to explain the importance of pollinators to people and the planet.