Climate Action
It’s Buzzing in Detroit
May 9, 2025
Amina taariq-sidibe, Manager of End Plastics Initiatives
It’s buzzing in detroit!
Date: April 25, 2025
Location: Detroit Michigan
Mood: Cheerful!
Weather: Clear Skies and no rain even though storms were threatened
On Earth Day this year, I had the wonderful opportunity to speak to different over-zooms with audiences about the important work EARTHDAY.ORG is doing with local schools and the National Parents Union.
But the downside was that I spent most of the day indoors. That’s why I was so excited to make it up and get my hands dirty for Arbor Day in Detroit, April 25th. I spent the day volunteering with Detroit Hives at the Finney Community Arboretum and Botanical Garden, a formerly vacant lot that has now become a green space for people, plants, and pollinators alike.
Pollinators are essential to life on earth as they enable over 75% of flower plants and more than a third of the world’s food crops to reproduce. Without them, ecosystems would collapse and our diets would be far less nutritious and diverse. Yet pollinators are under threat from habitat loss, pesticides, climate change and pollution.
Detroit Hives are leading the movement to protect pollinators like Eastern bumble bees, green sweat bees and monarch butterflies by planting native wildflowers and creating safe spaces for nesting.
“The Arbor Day Volunteer event is part of our broader vision for the Finney Community Arboretum and Botanical Garden—a four-season perennial oasis designed to benefit both people and pollinators in the Finney neighborhood. This initiative was born directly from community feedback and is our response to local concerns around urban heat islands, stormwater runoff, inner-city blight, and limited access to green spaces and physical mobility. Through a collaborative effort, we’re transforming this space into a community anchor that supports Detroit’s designations as a Tree City, Bird City, Bee City USA, and a UNESCO City of Design.”
A great group of volunteers and community supporters, led by Detroit Hives’ Timothy Jackson and Nicole Lindsay, came out to complete this big project. Detroit Hives started in 2016 with founders Timothy and Nicole after they discovered the healing properties of local raw honey. During this time, the City of Detroit began encouraging residents to purchase and revitalize vacant lots.
Inspired by this they then began a movement to transform vacant lots into thriving pollinator habitats, which included transforming the property of Eminem’s former childhood home into a bee sanctuary in 2022.
I volunteered on a similar pollinator project years ago in Poughkeepsie, NY, and it has always been amazing to witness a run-down space transform into a testament of community action.
We helped plant over 40 perennials and Michigan native plant species, including Bee Balm, May Night Sage, Black Truffle Cardinal Flowers, Great Blue Lobelia, Pomegranate Yarrow, Mountain Mint, and Purple Asters. Native plant species are important because they are better at adapting to local soil and climate, improving soil health, and supporting local biodiversity.
In the process we dug up over 60 pounds of concrete debris, cleared out two full bags of trash, which was overwhelmingly plastics, and spread out 16 cubic yards of mulch. Trees were also planted, including Downy Serviceberry and Northern White cedars., I heard that the local government provided a grant for the new trees to be planted and were rightly very excited about this initiative to clean up abandoned lots.
“I am so thankful for everyone who came out and lent a helping hand to support both people and pollinators. With the support of our diverse group of volunteers, we were able to make real progress toward building the Finney Community Arboretum and Botanical Garden.”
The Michigan Labor Legacy Monument
Aminah Taariq-Sidibe an Volunteer Maryetter
During my time in Detroit, I also visited landmarks that represent the history of the area, like The Michigan Labor Legacy Monument and Lafayette Greens. These landmarks reminded me that resilience is about transformation, not just maintaining the status quo or surviving. For example, after the historic Lafayette Building was demolished, the vacant lot was turned into a lush green space!
Today, Detroit is recognized as a Bee City, which means they are committed to pollinator conservation.
Volunteering was wonderful and learning from and working alongside people like Detroit Hives and the volunteers who came from Sanctuary Farms I had a much better grasp of why these precious pollinator gardens are so vital in urban spaces. There should be more instances of local government collaborating with people to create a healthier environment.
Finally, this experience left me with a lot to think about in terms of plastics use in agricultural practices like gardening. During our work, we used plastic materials like plastic pots, plastic tree tubes and plastic sheeting under the mulch. Plastic used in gardening is important to address especially as new research finds harmful impacts of microplastics on pollinators.
Although these materials were necessary to help beautify the space, I hope projects like these will be able to have more plastic free alternatives in the future. I am inspired again to work hard and find solutions to create a cleaner and healthier earth.
“I love giving back to my community, especially outdoors. It gives me an opportunity to get out, meet others, and feel a greater sense of purpose.”
