"Sustainable" is a yardstick that comes in different lengths depending upon where you shop.
I would consider sustainability to be an economic concept, in which inputs (time, money, materials, etc) should
not exceed outputs.
The natural beekeeping movement frequently adds an anti-technology skew, in which some inputs are favored over others: Work is considered "free", and not included in the tally, and high-tech inputs such as synthetic chemicals are summarily eschewed as inherently unsustainable.
(Curiously I suggest that many "natural beekeepers" would give plastic small-cell frames a pass as sustainable, conveniently overlooking their manufactured origins)
While my own practices would likely pass for "sustainable" using an ideological yardstick, they are labor intensive, and completely economically unsustainable if it wasn't for my own free labor.
Looking through my notes I see two treatises on sustainable beekeeping, one by Top Bar advocate Philip Chandler, and the other by Warre advocate David Heaf.
The tone of Chandler's writing is accusatory, whereas Heaf more thoughtfully breaks the issue down.
The UK Department for International Development also has an exploration of sustainable agriculture, and although it's not beekeeping specific, it touches on relevant concepts.
"Towards sustainable beekeeping" - David Heaf
"Towards sustainable beekeeping" - Phil Chandler
"Sustainable Agriculture" - UK Department of International Development
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From: 25 Hives <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Tuesday, October 1, 2013 8:25:27 AM
Subject: [BEE-L] Defining "sustainable"
I've been in some off-line and on-line discussions on "sustainable" beekeeping. Our fear that beekeeping in its current state is "unsustainable." Lately, it seems our conversation has been going around in circles.
I think our problem in our discussions is finding a common consunsus for how we define "sustainable." What do these practices look like?
Your input is appreciated.
I've been through the archives and many times the notion of a "sustainable" approach is mentioned frequently, but never clearly articulated, most commonly assumed we all know what this means.
Grant
Jackson, MO
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