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The coleopteran (Oxythyrea cinctella) on the plant (Chrysanthemum coronarium) during pollinator monitoring. Credit - Chara Apostolidou.

Learning about Pollinators and other beneficial insects at the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia in Cyprus

Insect pollinators and other beneficial insects, such as ladybirds, are essential for agricultural crops and ultimately the production of fruit and vegetables for us all. They are also intrinsically important for the biodiversity of our planet and contribute to our health and wellbeing.

Through this project, ‘Environmental education and raising awareness about pollinators and beneficial insects’, we aimed to address the lack of awareness and education around these insects, especially in younger generations. Although we mainly considered children and teachers as our audience, we also included researchers and policy-makers. Through interactive games, storytelling, and citizen science schemes, we aimed to increase understanding of the important roles that insects play in ecosystems and the amazing functions and services they provide. This was a challenge but also an opportunity to create long-term impact by collaborating with public institutions (e.g. the Cyprus Ministry of Education and schools) and private stakeholders (e.g. charities, local publishers, and designers).

We reached out to schools, environmental education centres, and NGOs. We collaborated with a local graphic designer to develop the ‘Pollen Rollers’ game (a life-sized board game), and worked with a private publishing house to print three children’s stories in English and Greek. We worked together with teachers at the Akrotiri Environmental Education Centre (Cyprus) to co-create our stories and games and ensure they were suitable and fun for early learners.

Through the apps Flower Insect Timed (FIT) Count and iNaturalist, we actively engaged school children, university students, and other adult groups during local events that record biodiversity and monitor insect-plant interactions. We empowered teachers by training them on insect pollinators and demonstrating the ‘Pollen Rollers’ game. By collaborating with the teachers at the Akrotiri Environmental Education Centre as well as staff at the Joint Services Health Unit, we created opportunities to extend the project beyond the initial funding period.

During local events that record biodiversity, more than 800 pollinator records were collected from various habitats, enriching our knowledge about pollinators island wide. Educational workshops and school visits reached nearly 250 children, sparking curiosity and encouraging participation in biodiversity monitoring. This blend of storytelling, play and recording biodiversity through citizen science not only raised awareness but also laid the groundwork for sustained biodiversity monitoring and conservation across the island.

We engaged with public authorities, including submitting a formal proposal to the Ministry of Education for the integration of our educational tools into the national curriculum. These efforts were supported by participation in conferences and workshops, where we networked with academic institutions, including the initiation of international collaboration with Ohio State University.

This project was a collaborative effort between Enalia Physis Environmental Research Centre, Joint Services Health Unit, British Forces Cyprus, and the UK Centre of Ecology and Hydrology. Funded by Darwin Plus Local it ran from April 2024 to March 2025. While no private partners provided funding, the Joint Services Health Unit as well as staff of the Akrotiri Environmental Education Centre and the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology provided in-kind contributions.

Leaving a legacy

The legacy of the project lies in the creation of lasting educational tools – bilingual fairy tales, the ‘Pollen Rollers’ game, and a pollinator database – that continue to raise awareness among students, teachers, and the public. These are affordable, reusable, and reproducible educational tools that are available online. We worked together with staff from the Ministry of Education in Cyprus to submit a proposal to integrate pollinator education into the national curriculum, aiming to influence long-term environmental education policy. Our partners who provided time in kind, also committed in supporting insect conservation efforts within the UK Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia.

Written by Chara Apostolidou. For more information on this Darwin Plus Local project DPL00081, led by Enalia Physis, please click here.