Beedabei – to set a (peace) sign

What a mega project!!

For World Peace Day 2022 and World Bee Day 2023, we participated in the Beedabei art projects.

Artists Peter Kalb and Gisela Bartulec create artworks from yellow flower boxes. The art also serves as a “carrier”—the flower boxes are yellow because bees can recognize this color and thus identify them as feeding sites. In this way, they help to preserve biodiversity.

And what about Hawelti e.V.?

Honey plays an important role in Ethiopian culture. For example, there has long been a “Tedj/Mes,” an Ethiopian honey wine, which is primarily homemade.

Back in 2017, we learned about a project in Aksum that specifically taught beekeeping to women, enabling them to earn an income and preserve the honey so vital to the region.

From November 2020 to November 2022, a terrible war raged in Tigray, in which many people lost their lives or their futures. Currently, there is a ceasefire; however, official peace has unfortunately not yet been achieved.

This gave rise to the idea of ​​creating a symbol of peace by arranging 25 Beedabei flower boxes in Aksum, northern Ethiopia.

This gave rise to the idea of ​​creating a symbol of peace by arranging 25 Beedabei flower boxes in Aksum, northern Ethiopia. Furthermore, we would like to draw attention once again to this war, which has received little attention in the Western world, and send a message of peace. Furthermore, we are building a bridge to the long cultural tradition of honey and, with the yellow boxes, are also providing bees with foraging grounds.

A sponsorship covers the purchase of a flower box, its transport to Aksum in northern Ethiopia, and the planting on site. This costs €35.00 per box.

We are delighted that all sponsorships have been allocated and say THANK YOU!

• Our partner Beedabei has created a dedicated page for this project
• This page will remain online even after the project’s completion

Please visit Beedabei’s page.

Project Update January 20, 2024:

WOW – what a project result!!

We spent a long time preparing this “art project.” On December 26, 2023, the 25 bee feeders were (securely) packed and began their journey to Aksum. Luckily, our fears proved unfounded, and our box arrived safely in Shire and then in Aksum.

A few days later, we took it to the nursery by donkey cart. The owner, Yonas, liked the idea so much that he immediately offered his support. His team transformed our boxes into “bee feeders” – at least with the plants that were currently available.

At the same time, we had several discussions with the city of Aksum about when and where we could install our (peace) symbol – and the result couldn’t have been better!

Where?
Right in front of the Stele Park – one of THE landmarks in Aksum.

When?
The date couldn’t have been better chosen!
January 20, 2024, for Timket – the baptism of Jesus – and one of THE days in Aksum (and Tigray).

And even though this art project didn’t go quite as Beedabei usually does, it turned out to be an unforgettable experience! This art project, with which Beedabei was represented in Africa/Ethiopia/Tigray/Aksum for the first time, was a great success!

Numerous interested people gathered even during the setup; and this continued throughout the entire morning! A large part of this was due to the head of the tourism office, Gebremedhin Fitsumbrhan (also one of our members), who tirelessly explained the art project to everyone interested.

Not to mention that we even became part of the Timket ceremony with our Aksum project. And then the church leaders and the mayor of Aksum joined us and received an explanation from Gebremedhin!

We can only say THANK YOU once again to everyone who supported us with this idea! This includes, of course, Peter and Gisela from Beedabei, but also the wonderful people who made this project possible through sponsorships! We also want to thank the many wonderful people in Aksum.
These include Asefaw Degefaw, Gebremedhin Fitsumbrhan, Yonas, and everyone who was part of this unforgettable (art) project.

A short film was created from the footage, which we hope can capture some of this special atmosphere. You can find it here on our YouTube channel.