San Diego is America's
bee biodiversity hotspot.
Most people have no idea. We're about to fix that — with a lot of help from our community.
Bee San Diego is a community-wide campaign to celebrate San Diego's extraordinary native bees — and build something lasting for the people and pollinators who call this county home.
Two problems. One campaign.
San Diego's native bees are largely unknown — and so is the next generation of people who could protect them.
A Permanent Native Bee Sanctuary
A publicly accessible native bee sanctuary at WorldBeat Cultural Center in Balboa Park — where any San Diegan can come to learn, observe, and connect with the species that have always shared this county with them.
The Youth Conservation Outreach Fund
Hands-on conservation education, field experiences, and professional pathways for young people in underserved communities — the next generation of San Diego's environmental stewards. The bees need them. We need them.
Pick your hive.
Bee San Diego is a multi-chapter campaign. Each chapter is a different way to celebrate San Diego's native bees.
Five San Diego native bees illustrated by tattoo artist Meg Knobel, available as limited edition tattoos at Outdoor Traditions. Local ink for local pollinators.
A multi-stop community trail through San Diego neighborhoods. Collect illustration cards at each stop, work toward a mystery sixth card — and a surprise waiting at WorldBeat.
Businesses, schools, and organizations adopt a native San Diego bee — matched to their personality. Then they spread the word and show their bee some love, their way.
How do you want to show up?
For Businesses, Schools & Organizations
Get matched to a native San Diego bee through the Spirit Bee questionnaire. Then represent your bee however feels most like you.
- Complete a short matchmaking questionnaire
- We research your bee from 700+ native species and introduce you personally
- Show your bee some love — decal, post, planting, event, lesson plan
- Get featured on the Spirit Bee sponsor map for all of San Diego to see
For Individuals & Families
You don't need to be a business to be part of this. Collect, ink, explore, spread the word.
- Get a bee tattoo — Ink for Pollinators at Outdoor Traditions
- Collect the illustration cards — each features a real San Diego native bee with field notes
- Complete the Bee Trail — visit all five stops and earn the mystery sixth card (coming soon)
- Spread the word — tag your photos, share the stat, tell someone about the 700
Six bees. Six illustrations.
One San Diego.
These are not field guides. Each illustration is an original artistic work by Meg Knobel — her way of seeing, celebrating, and doing justice to six of San Diego’s most remarkable native bees. The science is real. The art is entirely hers.
Bees are being revealed one at a time — name, description, and illustration drop together. Once revealed, each bee is available as a flash tattoo at $150 through Meg at Outdoor Traditions. A portion of every tattoo funds the campaign.
Pick up the illustration card at SAVAGE BEE-CHES in Old Town ($15). Then email Meg to book your appointment.
All illustrations © Meg Knobel & Bee San Diego Campaign. All rights reserved. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
This illustration exists. Meg has painted it. Nobody outside the campaign team has seen it — and nobody will until the first person completes the San Diego Bee Trail Poker Run.
Collect all five bee illustration cards from the Bee Trail stops across San Diego. Bring them to WorldBeat Cultural Center in Balboa Park. The sixth card is yours — free — and the bee is revealed to the world for the first time.
Not for sale. Cannot be purchased. Only earned.
The Bee Trail is coming — stay close.
Ready to wear your bee?
Get the illustration card at SAVAGE BEE-CHES in Old Town ($15), then email Meg to book your flash tattoo appointment at Outdoor Traditions. Flash tattoos are $150 — a portion funds the Bee San Diego campaign.
Every organization has a bee.
We just have to introduce you.
No two Spirit Bees are the same. We pull from all 700+ native species in San Diego County — so every sponsor gets their own unique match, personally researched and revealed by the campaign team.
Once matched, Spirit Bee sponsors are featured on this map and become part of a growing community of San Diego organizations standing up for the pollinators that make this county extraordinary.
Which bee is yours?
Spirit Bee Sponsors Across San Diego County
Click a region to filter · Each card tells the story of the adopted bee
Start the matchmaking →
Is there a bee out there with your organization's name on it?
Answer 7 questions. We search 700+ San Diego native species and introduce you to your match — personally.
San Diego's bees are documented.
The research is here.
Dr. Keng-Lou James Hung personally collected over 17,000 wild bees across San Diego County and produced the most comprehensive native bee survey of the region ever conducted.
Three things you can do right now.
Skip the Pesticides
Native bees are extraordinarily sensitive to pesticides. Even low doses can disorient foragers, destroy nests, or prevent reproduction. If it's designed to kill insects, it doesn't know which ones to spare.
Learn about bee-safe practices →Plant Native
San Diego's native bees evolved alongside San Diego's native plants. Even one or two native plants transforms a space into habitat.
Find native plants for your zip code →Rethink Honeybees
European honeybees are managed livestock. Research by Dr. James Hung shows honey bees now account for up to 90% of pollinators on many San Diego native plants, outcompeting the bees that actually belong here.
Read the research →🌿 A Permanent Native Bee Sanctuary
A publicly accessible sanctuary at WorldBeat Cultural Center in Balboa Park — open to any San Diegan. Built by the community. Open to everyone.
🎓 Youth Conservation Outreach Fund
Hands-on conservation education, field experiences, and professional pathways for young people in underserved communities. The bees need them. We need them.
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