A healthy network of plants and insects is the foundation of a healthy environment for all life on Earth, including people. In Rhode Island, there’s a whole community of programs working on the plant-insect network: studying pollinators, promoting native plants, building sustainable agriculture, and educating people. The Plant Insect Community Network is a program that connects these efforts together to leverage strengths, identify gaps, and raise the profile of the whole community.
Learn more about the RI Plant Insect Community Network.
The Network is made up of organizations, programs, and projects that work on pollinators or “pollinator adjacent” topics in Rhode Island. It helps existing initiatives rather than competing with them.
To raise the profile of Members’ collective efforts and to educate decision makers, the PICN issues an annual State of the Pollinators report. Network members are invited to attend various events each year. Some field trips are Network-facing, bringing together the creativity and resources of members to address a particular research question. Other outings are public-facing, bringing Network members together to exchange knowledge about the plant-insect network with the public. To learn about upcoming events, please refer to the Network’s social media accounts.
To hear the latest from members and beyond, the Network organizes an annual one-day gathering or meeting. A keynote speaker and other guests help bring an outside perspective while members and others present findings and accomplishments from their work.
The Plant Insect Community Network is a program of the Rhode Island Natural History Survey created in 2024 with a generous grant from the One Hive Foundation.