Kaveesha Abeykoon of Girl Scout Troop 41738 in Guilford County has earned the Girl Scout Gold Award for a community leadership and service project that addresses the issue of declining pollinator populations due to habitat loss and lack of awareness on their importance.
Aiming to address these root causes and inspire public action toward conservation, the Girl Scout Ambassador partnered with Greensboro Science Center and Stokesdale Town Council for her Gold Award project, “Pollinator Conservation,” to educate students and create a pollinator garden.
“Pollinators are essential to agricultural economies, our food supply and the surrounding landscape as they are responsible for more than one-third of the world’s food crops. However, pollinator populations have declined significantly,” said Abeykoon, a Girl Scout of seven years. “This issue is critical because pollinators play an essential role in maintaining our food sources, ecosystems and the natural balance of the world around us.”
To increase awareness of this issue, Kaveesha taught five classes to over 90 students, aged 6-12, on the importance of these populations, how pollination works and ways to protect these species. She created an informational website to reach a wider audience, and a QR code is displayed at the Greensboro Science Center’s Butterfly Garden and Stokesdale Town Park to reach more people. Park visitors will also find a library of books on pollinators to continue education for the community.
To provide food sources and a natural habitat for pollinators like bees and butterflies, the Gold Award Girl Scout installed a pollinator garden with two flower beds in Stokesdale Park. She also organized a hands-on activity for students to make seed balls to be planted at home, creating smaller pollinator-friendly areas across the county.
Girls in high school can earn the Girl Scout Gold Award by creating sustainable change on a community or world issue. They address the root cause of a problem, plan and implement innovative solutions to drive change and lead a team of people to success. Each Girl Scout must dedicate a minimum of 80 hours to planning and carrying out their project that benefits the community and has a long-lasting impact.
Gold Award Girl Scouts gain tangible skills and prove they are the leaders our community and world need, and those from the Girl Scouts Carolinas Peaks to Piedmont (GSCP2P) council have created community gardens, addressed issues in foster care, combated bullying in schools and so much more.
“One of the most important steps in fighting for an issue is ensuring people are aware of it. There is power in people, and if more people understand the importance of pollinators and the threats to their survival, this could become a more widely recognized and supported cause worldwide,” said Abeykoon. “That’s why my website is so important—it provides a platform for people to learn about pollinators, understand why they are essential, recognize why they are disappearing and discover ways to help protect these species.”
Thousands of Girl Scouts across the country earn the Girl Scout Gold Award each year, which first began in 1916 as the Golden Eaglet. Earning the Gold Award opens doors to scholarships, preferred admission tracks for college and amazing career opportunities. In 2024, 40 GSCP2P Girl Scouts earned their Gold Award.
To learn more about earning a Girl Scout Gold Award, visit https://www.girlscoutsp2p.org/en/members/for-girl-scouts/badges-journeys-awards/highest-awards/gold-award.html.
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