With concern growing around the rapid global decline of our bees, and the resulting potential impact on the world as we know it, staff at Nedbank Private Wealth and its trust division, Nedgroup Trust, have been helping to do their bit by spreading bee-friendly wildflower seeds.

The company’s Sustainability Forum provided all staff with the seeds in order to raise awareness of this issue as well as encourage staff to help in any little way they can. Staff in the Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey and London offices participated by planting the seeds in their gardens or in the wild. The packs contained various wildflower seeds, including birdsfoot trefoil, cornflower, field poppy and oxeye daisy. These wildflowers are known to be nutritious to bees, keeping them healthy so that they can continue to pollinate our food crops. Without bees, daily food items we take for granted, such as chocolate, strawberries and cucumber, would become scarce and expensive.

Linda Swales, head of the Sustainability Forum at Nedbank Private Wealth, said: “It has been encouraging to see so many staff getting involved with this latest initiative. We hope that by running this internal campaign we have raised enough awareness within Nedbank Private Wealth for the message to filter out further into our communities and encourage others to do the same, creating an even bigger impact.”

Nedbank Private Wealth’s Sustainability Forum, which was set up at the beginning of 2012, serves as a platform to raise awareness of sustainability among staff within the organisation. Each quarter the forum introduces a new campaign to promote awareness of different issues and how staff can manage their own impact by focusing on environmental issues, understanding how each of them can reduce their carbon footprint, and promoting sustainable living.

Photo - Heidi Kelly, daughter of Karl Kelly, an employee in the Isle of Man office, tending her wildflower garden.