Experts from 30 countries participated in a conference, workshops and management committee meetings related to an EU-funded Cost action entitled ‘Sustainable pollination in Europe – joint research on bees and other pollinators’ (Super-B), hosted by Mcast’s Institute of Applied Sciences.
More than 70 crops need insects for optimal pollination, and the direct economic value of crop pollination by insects in the EU is estimated at over €14 billion annually.
Many other wild plant species also benefit from animal pollinators, making pollination a key service for ecosystem and biodiversity maintenance.
The Super-B action brings together scientific and other communities to combine scientific evidence and social feedback to develop conservation strategies for pollinators.
Its results will be disseminated across Europe.
Cost is an intergovernmental framework for European cooperation in science and technology that facilitates the coordination of nationally-funded research in Europe. It is a mechanism by which researchers can network with colleagues working in the same areas across Europe.
The activities in Malta were coordinated by Mario Balzan from the Mcast institute, who represents Malta in the action’s management committee.
Cost coordinator in Malta Janet Mifsud also addressed the meeting participants.