Women for bees

Assisting women in preserving living nature

Created in 2020, with its first edition launched in 2021, the Women for Bees program initiated by Guerlain in partnership with UNESCO aims to train women in beekeeping around the world, enabling them to develop a sustainable professional activity and thereby promoting their independence.

It also contributes to the protection of bees and the repopulation of colonies in areas of high ecological value. The program places particular emphasis on local and endemic species.

Local partnerships around the world

This year, Women for Bees celebrates its fifth anniversary. In total, more than 250 women have been trained across four continents, and over 3,500 beehives have been installed.

On this occasion, Guerlain and UNESCO announce the renewal of their collaboration for three years, reaffirming their commitment to continuing and expanding the program to new regions of the world.

From May 27, 2026, an exhibition open to all will be held at UNESCO headquarters in Paris for several weeks.
It will showcase a selection of photographs taken by four local women photographers during different editions of Women for Bees, offering both an engaged and immersive perspective on the program worldwide.

Women

for bees

Spain

With NGO El Rincón de la Abeja, in Barcelona in 2022 and 2023

France

In southern France in 2021

China

Dans la réserve de biosphère de Xishuangbanna, province du Yunnan

Japan

Avec les associations à but non lucratif Umeda Mitsubachi à Osaka et Ginza Mitsubachi à Tokyo

Italie

Avec la coopérative Conapi, en Émilie-Romagneet en Calabre en 2022 et 2023

Rwanda

Dans la réserve de biosphère de Gishwati-Mukura Landscape en 2023

INDIA

Within the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve

Cambodia

Avec la Fondation Maddox Jolie-Pitt (MJP) à Angkor/Tonle SAP Biosphere Reserve 2022

Women

for bees

Spain

With NGO El Rincón de la Abeja, in Barcelona in 2022 and 2023

France

In southern France in 2021

China

Dans la réserve de biosphère de Xishuangbanna, province du Yunnan

Japan

Avec les associations à but non lucratif Umeda Mitsubachi à Osaka et Ginza Mitsubachi à Tokyo

Italie

Avec la coopérative Conapi, en Émilie-Romagneet en Calabre en 2022 et 2023

Rwanda

Dans la réserve de biosphère de Gishwati-Mukura Landscape en 2023

INDIA

Within the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve

Cambodia

Avec la Fondation Maddox Jolie-Pitt (MJP) à Angkor/Tonle SAP Biosphere Reserve 2022

INDIA IN 2026

Within the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, a new Women for Bees cohort embodies the program’s mission: making beekeeping a lever for women’s empowerment while actively contributing to bee conservation.

50 women from rural communities are embarking on a beekeeping training program, often for the first time as a professional activity in the region. Spread across five sites — Wayanad, Nilambur, Pillur, Sigur, and Karamadai — they have completed over 60 hours of training, combining scientific knowledge with the promotion of local expertise.

WOMEN FOR BEES IN CHINA

In 2025, the Women for Bees program expands to the Xishuangbanna Biosphere Reserve, located in Yunnan Province, by training a new cohort of 45 women beekeepers in modern hive management techniques and entrepreneurial skills.

This project takes place in a critical context: local bees, particularly Apis cerana, play a vital role in crop pollination and the preservation of wild plants.

“THANKS TO THE WOMEN FOR BEES PROGRAM, I BECAME AWARE OF THE INCREDIBLE ROLE BEES PLAY.”
YANYAN CANG, BEEKEEPER IN CHINA

WOMEN FOR BEES IN JAPAN

In 2024, Guerlain strengthened its commitment in Japan by meeting the 50 beekeepers who graduated from the 2022 and 2023 cohorts in Tokyo and Osaka, alongside Mirei Kiritani, ambassador for Guerlain Japan.

With the support of local partners Ginza Mitsubachi Project in Tokyo and Umeda Mitsubachi Project in Osaka, the Women for Bees program in Japan provides a concrete and innovative approach to increasing women’s involvement in beekeeping, a field that remains largely closed and male-dominated in the country.