This community group is building a buzz around bee education in Southern Arizona

In the dry, sun-scorched desert landscape of Tucson, a group of dedicated individuals is working tirelessly to protect one of nature's most vital creatures: the honeybee. 

The Southern Arizona Beekeepers Association (SAZBA) has been a cornerstone in the local community since 2017, working to foster a deeper understanding of beekeeping and raise awareness about the ecological importance of bees in the Sonoran Desert.

Since 2017, the Southern Arizona Beekeepers Association has grown into a hub for both seasoned apiarists, newcomers eager to learn the delicate art of beekeeping and community members just looking to gain more knowledge about local bees. 

With over 100 active members, the organization serves as a platform for education, resource-sharing and community building, all while aiming to address the critical issues affecting the bee population in Southern Arizona.

“Bees are essential for the Southern Arizona landscape,” said SAZBA member and educator Monica King, who’s been a part of the organization since 2017. “Without them, we wouldn’t have the food supply we rely on daily. More than 75% of flowering plants depend on pollinators and Tucson is a hotspot for biodiversity. Bees are at the core of this web of life.”

Despite their importance, bees face increasing threats due to habitat loss, pesticide use, climate change and diseases. These challenges have led to a worrying decline in bee populations across the globe. That’s where SAZBA comes in.

SAZBA has made education a priority, according to King. Each month, the association hosts meetings and workshops that cover a range of beekeeping topics, from hive management and honey production to dealing with pests and protecting bee health. For many local residents, these classes are an introduction to the rewarding and often mysterious world of beekeeping.

“You don’t have to be a commercial beekeeper to make a difference,” King said. “Even having a couple of hives in your backyard can provide support for local pollinators, but we want you to know how to handle and care for them properly. That’s where we come in, we educate everyone who wants to learn.”

One of the association’s most well-known programs is the “Pollination Education” initiative, which brings speakers and experts from SAZBA into local schools to educate students about the roles of bees in pollination and to encourage schools to plant native pollinator-friendly plants and install bee habitats. It’s a simple yet effective way to enhance local biodiversity and provide safe spaces for bees to thrive in urban settings.

“Last year, we individually reached out to and educated over 7,200 people, just personally interacting when they came up to us at one of our presentations at all of these different locations and events we are at. We also have that on our website, where there's the community outreach page that shows where we've all been in the community and where we're going to be coming up this spring.” 

At the heart of the program is a commitment to sustainability and community education. Tucson’s local beekeepers have become key players in the initiative, working to create proper bee habitats, educate others and sustain healthy bee communities throughout Southern Arizona. 

“We’re not just teaching people to keep bees,” King said. “We’re teaching them how to live in harmony with the environment. Bees are our partners in this process.”

King stressed that education is a top priority but the group also offers special services like removal of queen bees and relocation of hives as well. SAZBA also provides hands-on support for beekeepers.

“A lot of people reach out to the group with questions,” King said. “Most of the time it's because there's been an established hive that the homeowner starts to really trust and feel as though the bees are not dangerous and then, just not knowing bee husbandry, the bees will actually swarm and then there'll be a new queen, which will change the genetics and the defensive behavior of the colony.

“And when people don't realize that and these Africanized bees become dangerous because they have been known to go on the defensive up to 200 yards away from their initial location, this can become an issue and we are called to help guide the homeowners or come for a removal.”

King said she is part of a small team of trained professionals within the group that works with the community to offer bee removal services. King, a third-generation beekeeper, wants most of all to spread proper education and save as many bees as she can.

“When we do bee removals from unwanted locations, we can actually save those Africanized bees, kill their queen and replace it with one of our known European genetic queens,” King said. “And in a 2-3 month period the offspring are now our queen and we have a more docile hive and the bees are still around. We're able to basically save the colony from extermination.”

With over 100 active members, SAZBA serves as a platform for education, resource-sharing and community building, all while aiming to address the critical issues affecting the bee population in Southern Arizona.

Courtesy Southern Arizona Beekeepers Association

While the future of bees can seem uncertain at times, SAZBA remains hopeful and committed to its mission. Through regular collaboration with other environmental groups, including the University of Arizona’s Cooperative Extension, SAZBA is also part of ongoing research into how local beekeepers can improve bee health in an increasingly unpredictable world, King said. 

“It’s important that we stay ahead of the curve,” King said. “With the work that SAZBA is doing, we’re able to give our bees the best chance at surviving the challenges ahead.”

One of the outreach events that King enjoys most every year is the Tucson Festival of Books where SAZBA has a table in the Science City portion of the festival. Here, they offer educational resources and insight into the association and highlight bee literature to pair with the theme of the festival. 

“We always try to reach out to our national beekeeping publishers and see what literature we can promote along with our educational material at the Tucson Festival of Books,” King said. “So that people that are interested in pollinators and things like that, when they come to our spot in Science City, we can promote both SAZBA and books on bees for the public. We will have flyers on our beekeepers' favorite books for the year and things like that. And I really love that because it's very educational and fun.”

Each year, SAZBA also tables at the Pima County Fair where members and the public have the chance to see a queen bee up close. The event is another opportunity to celebrate the hard work of Tucson’s beekeeping community and raise awareness about the importance of protecting bees.

As Tucson continues to grow, the SAZBA remains a beacon of hope for the environment and the future of local agriculture, King stressed. The organization has become a model for how communities can come together to address environmental issues and grow community education.

“We want to keep growing, keep educating and keep inspiring people to get involved,” King said. “Every hive we place, every person we educate, makes a difference.”

For more information about the Southern Arizona Beekeepers Association and its programs, visit southernazbeekeepers.org.