girl scouts of the colonial coastGirl Scout Ambassador Christine of Troop 1324 earned her Gold Award through her project titled, “Pollinator Power!” Christine wanted to focus on environmental education and sustainability, so she worked with master gardeners of the Colonial Beekeeper’s Association to address the drastic decline of bees in her community.
“Recent years have seen an extreme decline in pollinator populations, primarily as a result of human activities,” Christine said. “If no action is taken now, future generations will have to deal with a complete upheaval of the food chain and significant environmental impacts.”
Christine learned that a major variable in our community is designer backyard landscaping with non-native species of plants, which greatly reduces the natural habitat for pollinators. She led a project to create a pollinator garden at Yorkminster Presbyterian Church, her church and where her troop meets. Christine created a video presentation for volunteers from the congregation and girls from her troop to explain the necessity of pollinators and shared plans how they could help her create the garden.
She and her volunteers spent hours constructing garden beds and planting native species.
She hopes the education of her congregation will encourage them to adopt these practices, make changes in their own home gardens and to continue to share her message of how small changes can make a big impact on our tiny heroes- the pollinators!
