Girl Scout Cadette Lana Janas, of Zuni, was recently awarded the Girl Scout Silver Award, the highest achievement for her grade level in Girl Scouting. 

A Girl Scouts of the Colonial Coast press release continued by noting that to achieve this accomplishment, Janas completed a service project she titled, “Bee the Change; Save the Bees.” 

Through research, Janas found that pollinators, like native bees and honey bees, are threatened globally and campaigned for awareness about things people can do to protect these species in their own backyards. 

Janas shared information at the Isle of Wight County Easter Egg Hunt on April 9 with an interactive and informative display tent for guests to visit. The tent had activities for children, bee identification fact sheets and information about pollinator gardens and how to start one. Janas hopes the easily digestible information will encourage her community to take action. 

“Bees are our primary and most efficient pollinators for flowers, fruits and vegetables,” she said. “If no action is taken, and the bee population continues to decline, our own food chain will be threatened.

“Things we can do to help both native bees and honey bees are to plant pollinator gardens, include bee houses for solitary bees, add bee-safe water sources to our gardens, and to limit or eliminate, if possible, the use of pesticides,” she continued. “Adding pollinator gardens will end the food deserts that we have created with plain grass yards and urban development.”

Janas’ troop leader and mother, Laura Janas, said, “Lana’s interest in saving the bees began after meeting beekeepers in Montana and then learning about endangered American heritage animals at Mill Swamp Indian Horses in Smithfield. Lana additionally campaigned about her Save the Bees platform at the Isle of Wight County Fair Pageant and won Junior Miss Isle of Wight in 2021. By doing so, she has been able to share her project with a larger community.”

Lana Janas previously earned her Girl Scout Bronze Award and plans to continue taking action to improve her community as a Girl Scout.