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Leave the Leaves! Fall Promo Kit Now Available
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Leaves are not litter. They are food and shelter for butterflies, beetles, bees, moths, and more! Encourage your community to keep things a little wild this fall. Leaves, hollow and pithy stems, brush piles, dead wood, soil, and flower heads all provide important winter shelter for many invertebrates, including native bees.
In our updated Leave the Leave Promo Kit you will find talking points, social media content, printable outreach materials, videos to watch (and share), a template op-ed, links further reading, and ideas for signage.
View Your Leave The Leaves online promo kit.
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The Quiet Work Behind a Bee City: Southern Pines, NC’s Parks & Grounds Team
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We have a guest blog post, “The Quiet Work Behind a Bee City: Southern Pines, NC’s Parks & Grounds Team.” A tribute not only to hard work of Graham Purcell, Bryon Robb, Ryan Barber, Michael Bullins, Quintin Evers, and Brent Shockley in Southern Pines, but to all the parks employees, public works crews, groundskeepers, horticulturists, volunteers, and municipal staff across the country. As Kate Shinkwin, Chair of Bee City USA – Southern Pines, NC, notes:
“They are the hands behind so much of Bee City USA’s success. So while this is a story about five people making a tremendous impact in Southern Pines, it is also a thank-you to all of the people just like them. . . To the people who keep watering when the rain doesn’t come. And to the people who quietly make their communities a little more beautiful, a little more resilient, and a little more alive every single day. Sometimes meaningful change begins with a grand plan. But more often, it begins with someone looking at an empty patch of ground and imagining what might bloom there and a team willing to do the hard work to make it grow.”
Read more
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[Webinar] Allies in Conservation: Making Your HOA a Haven for Pollinators
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A growing number of our community members live in neighborhoods with Homeowner’s Associations, covenants, or deed restrictions. With a little creativity and a lot of love for our insect neighbors, these spaces can be transformed into havens for pollinators! In this webinar, Xerces Society staff Aaron Anderson and Jacqueline Buenrostro will discuss the many ways we can support the amazing invertebrates within HOA communities, with tips, tricks, and new resources to share for creating and maintaining habitat that is “HOA-ready.”
Allies in Conservation: Making Your HOA a Haven for Pollinators
Tuesday, October 6
11 AM PT / 12 PM MT / 1 PM CT / 2 PM ET
Free
Register
This webinar will be recorded and available on the Xerces YouTube channel on the Bee City USA Playlist. Closed Captioning will be available during this webinar.
To request a reasonable accommodation or for inquiries about accessibility, please contactoutreach@xerces.org.
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Aaron Anderson
Pesticide Program Specialist, Towns and Cities Lead
Xerces Society
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Jacqueline Buenrostro
Pesticide Program Specialist, Urban Policy Lead
Xerces Society
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If you know of a community that might be interested in becoming a Bee City or Bee Campus, we'd love to connect with them. We're particularly interested in those in Alaska or Hawaii, two states where we have no affiliates. Let us know at beecityusa@xerces.org.
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Coffee and Coworking: Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Plans
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Join us on the last Tuesday of each month for Coffee and Coworking. We know everyone is busy, so we’re setting aside time where you and your fellow Bee City USA and Bee Campus USA affiliates can chat, ask questions, or just silently work. Our focus in September is integrated pest management (IPM) and pesticide reduction strategies. You could use this coworking time to update your community’s IPM plan, price out steam weeders, or plan a landscape staff training session.
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Coffee and Coworking: Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Plans
Tuesday, August 25
11 AM – 12 PM PDT / 12 PM – 1 PM MT / 1 PM – 2 PM CT / 2 PM – 3 PM ET
Register
Free
Jacqueline Buenrostro, Pesticide Program Specialist, Urban Policy Lead; Carly Hirschmann, Community Engagement Specialist; and Matthew Shepherd, Director of Outreach and Education, will be on hand to help.
This an informal event with no agenda or presentation, just a chance to focus on implementing your Bee City USAor Bee Campus USAcommitments. This meeting will not be recorded. Drop in anytime during this one-hour window. Brew some coffee, grab a snack, and join us!
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About IPM Plans
Bee City USA and Bee Campus USA affiliates are required to have an outdoor integrated pest management (IPM) plan that includes pollinator conservation and pesticide reduction within the first few years of certification.
To help, we have a free online IPM Plan Toolkit. It includes four sections:
- About IPM Plans
- IPM Plan Checklist & Template
- IPM Plan Examples & Case Studies from BCUSA affiliates
- Non-Chemical Management Tools for Outdoor Landscapes
When ready, please upload your IPM plan to:
- Your Bee City/Campus "Profile" tab
- Your city/school's own Bee City/Campus webpage
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How to Tell Apart Bumble Bee Males, Workers, and Queens
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With a little practice, you can learn more about any bumble bee you see! ?Ÿ???Ÿ”?
Within one species of bumble bee, there are three types of individuals: queens, female workers, and males. We’ve put together a guide to teach you how to use clues like time of year, pollen, fuzziness, eye size, and more!
Read more
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[Policy Corner] Oregon’s New Pollinator Conservation Strategy Prioritizes Actions Across the State
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To make the greatest impact, land managers and public agencies need clear priorities backed up by scientific data. They need to know exactly where and how to take action so their efforts protect the highest number of at-risk species. Especially in a place like Oregon, where landscapes vary from high desert to coastal forest and support hundreds of different pollinators.
So, to solve this problem, we developed the Oregon Pollinator Conservation Strategy! The strategy identifies priority species and regions, evaluates the threats they face, and recommends actions to protect and restore pollinator habitat. Plus, we also built an interactive online dashboard where users can explore maps, learn about priority species, and identify conservation opportunities across Oregon.
Read more
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Our Annual Report is Coming at the End of Sept. . . But You Can Still Submit Your Report!
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Thank you to everyone who has already finished their reports and paid. If you haven't yet heard from us, we'll be in touch when your report is approved this month.
Your PDF'd renewal report will be posted to our website at the end of Sept and we will email you all a link along with our collective annual report.
Each year, Bee City USA and Bee Campus USA affiliates share a renewal report and pay a renewal fee. Our deadline was May 31, 2026. If you need an extension email beecityusa@xerces.org.
Please note: we have a new check payment address as of 3/2/2026:
Xerces Society
PO Box 739563
Dallas, TX 75373-9563
Who is due to report and pay?
- If your community was FIRST certified in 2024 or earlier, you are due to report and pay this year.
- If your community was FIRST certified in 2025, you do not need to report or pay until 2027.
- If your community was FIRST certified in 2026, you do not need to report or pay until 2028.
- If your community was one of the first 61 Bee Cities and Bee Campuses, just fill out the renewal report. You are an "early adopter" and do not need to pay the fee.
More info: How To Prepare Your Bee City Or Bee Campus Report
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Have an event, funding opportunity, or volunteer opportunity you would like us to promote? Emailbeecityusa@xerces.org. If you have a Bee City/Campus login: you can add events here.
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NEW Application and renewal fee address:
The Xerces Society
PO Box 739563
Dallas, TX 75373-9563
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Bee City USA and Bee Campus USA are initiatives of the Xerces Society.
The Xerces Society is a donor-supported nonprofit organization that protects our world through the conservation of invertebrates and their habitats.
Your tax-deductible donation will help grow and sustain that essential work.
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Image credits from top:
Leave the Leaves: Sign photo: Kailee Slusser / Xerces Society. Bumble bee photo: Katie Lamke
Southern Pines: Town of Southern Pines, NC
HOA Webinar: Emily May. Staff Photos: Aaron Anderson, Jacqueline Buenrostro
Coworking: Tommy Reeder (Wilsonville, OR)
Bumble bee males: Katie Lamke / Xerces Society
Policy Corner, Oregon: Molly Martin / Xerces Society
© The Xerces Society
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