Helping York become the most pollinator friendly city in the UK

York school children will be the first in the country to have the chance to get their hands on free pollinator listening devices that can help them learn the importance of pollinating insects to our environment and the sustainability of our planet’s food production.

York-based pollination and insect biodiversity innovator, AgriSound, is calling on schoolteachers and parents of children across York to nominate their school to help the city become the most pollinator friendly in the UK.  The deadline for schools to express interest is Friday 24th February.

To achieve this, AgriSound is giving schools across the city and surrounding area the chance to sign-up, free of charge for a 12-month installation of its bio acoustic pollinator listening device, ‘Polly’.  

Schools are invited to register their interest in receiving up to 4 Polly devices per school, free of charge, including 12 months’ data supply. Devices are quick and simple to install and are solar-powered. After the initial 12-month period, schools have the option to either return the devices or contribute to AgriSound’s future data costs at just £5/month per device.

The Polly will bridge the gap between indoor and outdoor learning environments and give schools a demonstration of wildlife in action to bring to life science and maths-based curriculum activities. 

Bees and other pollinators are hugely important to our planet, helping produce more than 75% of our food supply and support wider biodiversity. They are in decline due to climate change; habitat loss and pesticide use and need our help to survive. 

Operating in a comparable way to how a smart speaker functions, Polly listens 24/7 for the sounds of insects and uses advanced sound-analysis to translate the data into activity scores. The data is sent back to the cloud, where schools can view the pollinator activity via an app and secure web application in the classroom.

Westfield Primary Community School, Carr Manor Community School and Woodthorpe Primary School have been the first to pilot the scheme over the past nine months and the project has been backed by local environment and educational councillors. It is now ready to be rolled out to the greater city in a bid to make York the most pollinator friendly city in the UK.

Christine Banham, Outdoor Educational Lead for the three schools, said: “Our children care deeply about the environment, but often feel powerless to make a difference. These devices help us to show our children the part they play in conserving the world around them.”

“In recording the data month by month, year by year, pupils have a tangible view of how their actions make a difference. It’s hugely empowering for a child to see how the small changes they make, for example sowing wildflowers or adding a bee home, can significantly increase pollinators and consequently the whole food chain.”

Cllr Paula Widdowson, Executive Member for Environment and Climate Change at City of York Council said: “Pollinators are hugely important to our planet, helping produce more than 75% of our global food supply and support wider biodiversity. They are in decline due to climate change; habitat loss and pesticide use and need our help to survive. The Polly devices provide insight into pollinator levels and environmental conditions in York, contributing to York’s Pollinator Strategy and giving pupils first-hand exposure to how they can make a difference not only in school, but within their own gardens too.”

Casey Woodward, founder and CEO of AgriSound, said: “We believe that education is the key to building a more sustainable future, and we’re thrilled to be working with York schools to help bring the importance of pollinators to life for children. By providing free access to our Polly device, we hope to inspire the next generation to take action and help protect our planet’s biodiversity.”

To register interest on behalf of a school, follow this link to the short form: Polly expression of interest for schools.

ENDS

Issued on behalf of AgriSound by Faith PR. For further information contact [email protected] or call 01484 599886.

About AgriSound 

AgriSound Limited was launched in January 2020 and is based in York. The company was founded by Casey Woodward, an experienced agri-tech innovation expert, with an aim to bring modern technology to insect monitoring. AgriSound has created special smart sensors and listening devices to monitor insects across a range of environments including beekeeping, farming, educational and corporate sites, with the aim of deploying sensors across the planet to transform how people monitor insect activity and make a positive impact on biodiversity.  

Since its establishment, AgriSound has partnered with a number of companies and projects, including Dyson Farming, Innocent Drinks, National Trust Scotland and Royal Horticultural Society to spread the message worldwide and is continually looking for opportunities to branch out further. 

For more information, visit the AgriSound website: https://www.agrisound.io/  

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/agrisoundtech/  

Twitter: https://twitter.com/AgriSoundTech  

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/agrisound/