Queen’s postgraduate writes parliamentary briefing

Current postgraduate student Rebecca Ross (2006, Plant Sciences) has just completed a three-month Fellowship at the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST). POST is charged with providing balanced, independent and topical information to parliamentarians on topics of scientific interest and relevance. During this fellowship, which was sponsored by the British Ecological Society, she researched and wrote a science policy briefing on Insect Pollination. This was published last week, and there will be a seminar in Parliament to launch it on 20 January.

The document can be found via the link and summary below.

Publication number 348, Insect Pollination
Many plants, including crops, depend on insects to transfer pollen between flowers. Maintaining enough insect pollinators is therefore vital for biodiversity and a diverse food supply. Declines in pollinators, particularly in Europe and the USA, have provoked claims of a global pollination crisis. This POSTnote examines the risks of pollinator decline for the UK and explores strategies to provide stable pollination services into the future.