Conway Hall Ethical Society
25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL
UK
“Save the honeybee” stories are never far from the news, but is the species really under threat? And should environmentalists be interested in them at all? Queen bees are traded around the world, and honeybee populations are dependent on the work of beekeepers — they arguably shouldn’t even be seen as wildlife. Whilst honeybees are a focus of media attention, few people could name a single one of the thousands of plants faced with extinction. If we are to base our ethical decisions on reason and a concern for human beings and other sentient animals, we need to give more thought to our focus when protecting the natural world.
Our guest Dr Rebecca Nesbit will explore how we decide on conservation priorities, including the relative merits of the honeybee and the hairworm. As part of this discussion, she will argue that the evidence for the EU’s widely-publicised ban on neonicotinoid pesticides is not as clear cut as is presented in the news.
Rebecca is an ecologist and writer with a particular interest in the science and ethics of setting conservation priorities. She studied butterfly migration for her PhD, and she now works in science communication. She has written two books: “Is that Fish in Your Tomato?” (https://rebeccanesbit.com/is-that-fish-in-your-tomato/) looking at the fact and fiction of GM foods, and the novel “A Column of Smoke” (https://rebeccanesbit.com/column-of-smoke/).
We run a drinks and snacks bar at the event, the evening’s bar profits will be donated to the Galapagos Conservation Trust (https://galapagosconservation.org.uk/), Rebecca’s chosen charity.