Bees do much better in inner cities than in the countryside – streets, squares and neighbourhoods are dedicated to diverse species of wild bee.

It is hard to believe, but it is scientifically proven that bees do much better in inner cities than in the countryside. This is mainly due to polluted ground and surface water from pesticides, monoculture and destruction of nesting sites. The bee has become a refugee in need of shelter and food.

In order to prevent the extinction of the numerous species of wild bees, we need to understand them together as refugees who need food and a roof over their heads: the RefuBee.

This dilemma will be solved theoretically and practically in 2014, during the BeeCare symposium ‘The City as (temporary) Nature Reserve for pollinators’, with an interdisciplinary group including an ecologist, a sociologist and a policy maker.