The INA KESS Animal Foundation has been supporting the independent organisation, FREETHEBEES since 2022. Bees are an integral and critical element in our ecosystem and one of the main aims of the FREETHEBEES is to support the protection of the wild honeybee in its natural habitat. The INA KESS Animal Foundation sponsored the construction of two tree hollows as suitable habitats and bee nesting sites in the forest near Schindellegi, not far from our head office in Wollerau in the spring of 2023 to encourage honey bee settlement in the wild.
Background
In its pursuit of its primary goals of species conservation, safeguarding pollination, and promoting sustainable beekeeping, FREETHEBEES has been holding courses in the area around Vaulruz, Fribourg for many years to help raise awareness amongst beekeepers and nature lovers of the vulnerable situation of wild honey bees. In 2024 it opened an exceptional discovery trail for educational purposes in the same area that has a series of observation points and trail markers in the surrounding woods and fields.
This year a special room made of Plexiglas will be added through which nature lovers, students and children will be able to watch a living bee colony at work. The INA KESS Animal Foundation is thrilled to be one of the sponsors of this further project, supporting more awareness of bees and their place in our joint ecosystem.