Beekeeping with Indigenous People in the Amazon

Stingless bees create scent trails in the forest that lead their sisters to flowers so they can better gather nectar and feed the colony. So, too, are Maijuna stingless beekeeping educators – dubbed ‘promoters’ – showing new beekeepers the way to more hives and honey.

This May we launched promoter training with nine of our most accomplished beekeepers. During the last three months they have taken enormous strides as educators and are supporting family, neighbors, and entire communities to new levels of growth.

Within their own communities the Maijuna promoters are regularly working with beekeepers, making dozens of home visits to review progress, demonstrate new techniques, and encourage best practices that will boost this season’s sustainable honey harvest.

In Sucusari, Magnolia and Ilder hosted mini-workshops for neighbors teaching colony divisions and pest control, followed by family-level visits to support new beekeepers as they gain practice. Promoters Jermi and Duglas have been demonstrating techniques for reinforcing colonies to neighbors eager to learn from their experience. Saúl and Loida, the promoters in Nueva Vida, hosted a box-building workshop and constructed 18 new hives with locally-sourced materials. Together the couple has visited dozens of apiaries to support their community in mastering advanced husbandry techniques and boost future honey harvest. Tarkis has been making the beekeeping rounds in Puerto Huamán where she is accompanying her neighbors who are newly interested in the sustainable economic activity. Two promoters from Maijuna communities in the Napo River basin have traveled to the Putumayo to work with beekeepers in their first year of learning the trade.

The Maijuna beekeeping promoters are already sharing their knowledge beyond the reaches of their ancestral lands. A promoter has co-hosted multiday workshops with OnePlanet, the Chaikuni Institute, La Restinga, Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana (IIAP), and Camino Verde in communities in the Pacaya Samiria National Reserve and to Urarina communities along the Rio Tigre.

Just like the bees they tend, the strength of our beekeepers lies in the collective. Empowering educators based in beekeeping communities is foundational for establishing an activity that can be sustainable through space and time. The promoters are enthusiastically embracing their role in supporting the people and bees they care about. The Maijuna beekeeping promoters are eager to advance their training and are preparing to spearhead this years’ upcoming honey harvest. Thank you for your support of this cohort of beekeeping educators through this exciting chapter of our work!

The Maijuna Stingless Beekeeping School is growing in exciting directions! Our most advanced students started their journey toward becoming beekeeping educators themselves during the very first educator workshop this May!

As neighbors in Maijuna communities and beyond observe the success of stingless beekeeping and want to learn sustainable management, the demand for training and technical support has rapidly expanded. Seasoned Maijuna beekeepers are up to the task! Eager to share their expertise, nine beekeepers convened for the first in a series of trainings focused on honing effective educational practices. This star cohort manages over 120 colonies and boasts extensive experience and dedication to the trade.

During the workshop, beekeepers spoke of being energized to share their knowledge with family and neighbors. Several educators-in-training mentioned their conviction that beekeeping is important for children to learn as it will be an economic resource and cultural practice long into the future. Another beekeeper confided that he is motivated to teach because he has developed a deep affection for the bees and it pains him that many people needlessly destroy wild colonies for their honey. He hopes to share his knowledge of sustainable management and to inspire the same awe and esteem for the bees that he feels.

Beekeepers practiced public speaking, effective teaching methods, and how to curate a dynamic and supportive learning environment. In addition to pedagogy, participants deepened their knowledge of bee anatomy and life history. We are thrilled that our beekeepers continue to have deep curiosity about bees while being determined to be “generous with their knowledge,” as one mother and beekeeper put it. Thanks to your generosity, beekeepers and future educators have taken this exciting first step. We are eager to share updates as Maijuna beekeeping educators progress!