Green Industry Today
The King’s Cross (KX) Bee Trail App Goes Live for Summer
the award-winning citizen science project that IDs bees and unlocks vouchers for restaurants and cafes on the trail is back
Published 20 July 2018
The award-winning King’s Cross (KX) Bee Trail App 2018 will be available during the school summer holidays (July 9 – September 10) appealing to adults and children interested in bees and urban forage.
The tech-enabled 60 minute bee tour of King's Cross unlocks content at 7 locations about bees and how to help them, and allows you to ID and count bees as you walk.
Each of the seven locations along the 2018 KX Bee Trail are marked with a Honey Club sign. A 4-digit code on each sign, tapped into the App, unlocks a bee-related activity such as counting bees or learning about the forage that bees need to survive. Once the activity is completed, the App unlocks vouchers to some of the hip restaurants and cafes* in this emerging location behind King’s Cross Station.
The KX Bee Trail App is brought to you by The Honey Club, a
partnership between King’s Cross-based youth charity Global Generation and Urban Bees. It was awarded a Bees’ Needs Champion Award in 2017 by the government Defra Minister Lord Gardiner who said it was “an inspirational example of action to protect our pollinators”.
Alison Benjamin, co-founder of Urban Bees says: “We’re encouraging locals and visitors to help us count even more bees this summer. With the decline of 97% of wildflower meadows in the countryside, urban projects like the KX Bee Trail play a vital role in teaching people in a fun way how to help bees in towns and cities.”
“Walking and reconnecting with nature in an urban environment also has immense health benefits for our wellbeing,” she adds.
Nicole Van den Eijnde, director of Global Generation, says : “The App is a great way to engage young people in learning about nature on their doorstep and how central it is to all their lives. The food they help to grow in the Skip Garden and cook with in the cafe all depends on the bees.”
Julie Fisher, founder and director of Ruby Violet, whose voucher for a scoop of ice cream is unlocked on the App after a bee count, says: “I’m thrilled the KX Bee Trail App is back. Come and count our pollen-laden busy buzzing bees, efficiently organising themselves amongst the planting. No bees, no app, no honey ice cream, we need bees for so many of our flavours, Blackberry & Creme de Mure, Raspberry ripple, Blackcurrant sorbet.”
Steven Kellett, sustainability manager for property developer Argent adds; “We’re pleased that the community-created App has introduced visitors to some of the biodiversity of the King’s Cross development. A commitment to environmental sustainability is a cornerstone of the transformation of this former industrial wasteland, with 26 acres of new parks and open spaces planted with 380 trees and over 400 plant species. More than 40% of total new roof space is biodiverse (over 11,000m2).”
Last year, more than 500 bees were spotted, 77% were honey bees, 19% were buff-tailed bumble bees and 4% were red-tailed bumble bees. More than half of all the bees counted (55%) were at Handyside Gardens South (the 4th location on the trail) where there were most flowers. A further 28% of bees were seen at the Skip Garden, a community garden project delivered by Global Generation, where fruits, vegetables and herbs are pollinated by bees.
The results of the KX Beetrail bee count are shared with Greenspace Information for Greater London (GiGl) which collects data on the city’s wildlife to enable planners to make informed decisions. Since 2015 around three quarters of the bees counted via the KXBee Trail App have been honeybees, and around one in five buff-tailed bumblebees. The location of a number of hives around King’s Cross explains the frequent sightings of honeybees.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
For more information or interviews please contact Alison Benjamin at alison@urbanbees.co.uk or 07884054150.
For Images click here
Follow people on the trail @kxbeetrail honeyclub #kxbeetrail2018
About The App
The KX Bee Trail app was successfully piloted in August 2015. The app was designed and developed pro bono by brand agency Wolff Olins. The KX BeeTrail2018 app has been updated by Urban Bees, in partnership with Global Generation and is available to download for Android phones and iPhones during the summer holidays. In 2017 the App won a Defra Bees’ Needs Champion Award.
About The Honey Club
The Honey Club was set up as a partnership of three King’s Cross-based organisations Global Generation, Urban Bees and brand agency, Wolff Olins, with a mission to create a bee caring community in an urban space.
About Global Generation and the Skip Garden:
Global Generation is an educational charity whose aim is to connect people of all ages to each other and the natural world in order to build relationships, grow ecological understanding and entrepreneurialism as a foundation for creating a positive future. They run projects in their King’s Cross Skip Garden and in the surrounding business area and also at their campsite on Pertwood Farm in Wiltshire. The Skip Garden and cafe is open Tuesdays to Saturdays 10 – 4pm. www.globalgeneration.org.uk
About Urban Bees:
Urban Bees’ mission is to help bees in towns and cities. It works with companies, charities and communities to raise awareness about bees and improve bee-friendly forage and habitat for all bees. www.urbanbees.co.uk
About King’s Cross:
London's new creative quarter is home to 67 acres of inspiring businesses and outstanding architecture, destination restaurants and a vibrant cultural scene. The area’s industrial past has inspired the 50 new and repurposed buildings; the public spaces between them are a mix of parks, streets, squares, and gardens, with Granary Square and its fountains as a heart. Already known as a foodie hotspot, King’s Cross is now establishing itself as a shopping destination. Tom Dixon and Nike are among the many stores already open, with Space NK set to open shortly. The Heatherwick Studio-designed Coal Drops Yard, London’s newest shopping street, opens in a pair of reimagined Victorian coal buildings in October 2018, creating 100,000 sq ft of boutiques, shops, bars and restaurants in the centre of King's Cross.
The King’s Cross estate is owned by King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership, made up of Argent and pension fund Australian Super. http://www.kingscross.co.uk
*Special thanks to our partners who have made the Bee Trail possible:
The German Gymnasium, Caravan, Dishoom King’s Cross, Ruby Violet, The Skip Garden Kitchen. Argent, Omni Colour, Des Smith of Willerby Landscapes, Global Generation gardener, Julie Riehl, and our photographer Penny Metal.
The tech-enabled 60 minute bee tour of King's Cross unlocks content at 7 locations about bees and how to help them, and allows you to ID and count bees as you walk.
Each of the seven locations along the 2018 KX Bee Trail are marked with a Honey Club sign. A 4-digit code on each sign, tapped into the App, unlocks a bee-related activity such as counting bees or learning about the forage that bees need to survive. Once the activity is completed, the App unlocks vouchers to some of the hip restaurants and cafes* in this emerging location behind King’s Cross Station.
The KX Bee Trail App is brought to you by The Honey Club, a
partnership between King’s Cross-based youth charity Global Generation and Urban Bees. It was awarded a Bees’ Needs Champion Award in 2017 by the government Defra Minister Lord Gardiner who said it was “an inspirational example of action to protect our pollinators”.
Alison Benjamin, co-founder of Urban Bees says: “We’re encouraging locals and visitors to help us count even more bees this summer. With the decline of 97% of wildflower meadows in the countryside, urban projects like the KX Bee Trail play a vital role in teaching people in a fun way how to help bees in towns and cities.”
“Walking and reconnecting with nature in an urban environment also has immense health benefits for our wellbeing,” she adds.
Nicole Van den Eijnde, director of Global Generation, says : “The App is a great way to engage young people in learning about nature on their doorstep and how central it is to all their lives. The food they help to grow in the Skip Garden and cook with in the cafe all depends on the bees.”
Julie Fisher, founder and director of Ruby Violet, whose voucher for a scoop of ice cream is unlocked on the App after a bee count, says: “I’m thrilled the KX Bee Trail App is back. Come and count our pollen-laden busy buzzing bees, efficiently organising themselves amongst the planting. No bees, no app, no honey ice cream, we need bees for so many of our flavours, Blackberry & Creme de Mure, Raspberry ripple, Blackcurrant sorbet.”
Steven Kellett, sustainability manager for property developer Argent adds; “We’re pleased that the community-created App has introduced visitors to some of the biodiversity of the King’s Cross development. A commitment to environmental sustainability is a cornerstone of the transformation of this former industrial wasteland, with 26 acres of new parks and open spaces planted with 380 trees and over 400 plant species. More than 40% of total new roof space is biodiverse (over 11,000m2).”
Last year, more than 500 bees were spotted, 77% were honey bees, 19% were buff-tailed bumble bees and 4% were red-tailed bumble bees. More than half of all the bees counted (55%) were at Handyside Gardens South (the 4th location on the trail) where there were most flowers. A further 28% of bees were seen at the Skip Garden, a community garden project delivered by Global Generation, where fruits, vegetables and herbs are pollinated by bees.
The results of the KX Beetrail bee count are shared with Greenspace Information for Greater London (GiGl) which collects data on the city’s wildlife to enable planners to make informed decisions. Since 2015 around three quarters of the bees counted via the KXBee Trail App have been honeybees, and around one in five buff-tailed bumblebees. The location of a number of hives around King’s Cross explains the frequent sightings of honeybees.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
For more information or interviews please contact Alison Benjamin at alison@urbanbees.co.uk or 07884054150.
For Images click here
Follow people on the trail @kxbeetrail honeyclub #kxbeetrail2018
About The App
The KX Bee Trail app was successfully piloted in August 2015. The app was designed and developed pro bono by brand agency Wolff Olins. The KX BeeTrail2018 app has been updated by Urban Bees, in partnership with Global Generation and is available to download for Android phones and iPhones during the summer holidays. In 2017 the App won a Defra Bees’ Needs Champion Award.
About The Honey Club
The Honey Club was set up as a partnership of three King’s Cross-based organisations Global Generation, Urban Bees and brand agency, Wolff Olins, with a mission to create a bee caring community in an urban space.
About Global Generation and the Skip Garden:
Global Generation is an educational charity whose aim is to connect people of all ages to each other and the natural world in order to build relationships, grow ecological understanding and entrepreneurialism as a foundation for creating a positive future. They run projects in their King’s Cross Skip Garden and in the surrounding business area and also at their campsite on Pertwood Farm in Wiltshire. The Skip Garden and cafe is open Tuesdays to Saturdays 10 – 4pm. www.globalgeneration.org.uk
About Urban Bees:
Urban Bees’ mission is to help bees in towns and cities. It works with companies, charities and communities to raise awareness about bees and improve bee-friendly forage and habitat for all bees. www.urbanbees.co.uk
About King’s Cross:
London's new creative quarter is home to 67 acres of inspiring businesses and outstanding architecture, destination restaurants and a vibrant cultural scene. The area’s industrial past has inspired the 50 new and repurposed buildings; the public spaces between them are a mix of parks, streets, squares, and gardens, with Granary Square and its fountains as a heart. Already known as a foodie hotspot, King’s Cross is now establishing itself as a shopping destination. Tom Dixon and Nike are among the many stores already open, with Space NK set to open shortly. The Heatherwick Studio-designed Coal Drops Yard, London’s newest shopping street, opens in a pair of reimagined Victorian coal buildings in October 2018, creating 100,000 sq ft of boutiques, shops, bars and restaurants in the centre of King's Cross.
The King’s Cross estate is owned by King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership, made up of Argent and pension fund Australian Super. http://www.kingscross.co.uk
*Special thanks to our partners who have made the Bee Trail possible:
The German Gymnasium, Caravan, Dishoom King’s Cross, Ruby Violet, The Skip Garden Kitchen. Argent, Omni Colour, Des Smith of Willerby Landscapes, Global Generation gardener, Julie Riehl, and our photographer Penny Metal.
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