The Wisdom of the Hive: What Honeybees Can Teach Us about Collective Wellbeing

We’ve heard the refrain to save the bees, but what if the bees can save us too?

Beloved equity educators, authors, and beekeepers Michelle Cassandra Johnson and Amy Burtaine invite us to contemplate this question deeply. By looking at bees as teachers, the authors draw us into an examination of our relationship with each other and the world at large. Honeybees illustrate communal interdependence, attunement to nature, coexistence with darkness, and so much more―lessons worthy of emulating within our own human world.

In times marked by turmoil and uncertainty, honeybees offer a powerful example of how to turn toward each other, to deeply commit to creating conditions for survival of all beings, and to build a future where all can thrive. As Michelle and Amy write, “We won’t survive unless we remember our interconnectedness to all beings and change our ways of being―how we are to ourselves, one another, and the planet.”

This beautiful and thought-provoking book offers:

• Insights from beekeeping, Buddhism, and nature-based shamanic practices

• Stories, meditations, reflection questions, and practices to bring the wisdom of the hive to our own lives and bodies

• Encouragement to connect with nature and each other in new ways

With each chapter, we learn more about the life of a honeybee, our own lives, and our relationship to the collective as a part of an ever-changing ecosystem.