About Her Business & Career: Leigh-Kathryn Bonner is the founder and CEO of Bee Downtown, an organization that installs and maintains beehives at corporate campuses. Bonner comes from a long line of beekeepers and therefore grew up being taught the value of both agriculture and our planet’s most crucial little workforce. Bee Downtown works to share that knowledge by installing and maintaining hives at companies’ headquarters and then providing a program that educates the company’s employees and gives them a taste of the rewarding and hands-on experience that Bonner’s family has been enjoying for generations.
Why She Made the Worthy 100: Bonner discovered that the positive impact of honey bees extends past their environmental contributions; through the introduction of beehives across a wide variety of company campuses, Bee Downtown has been able to bring specific and valuable experiences to their clients. Not only do the bees create a positive environmental impact on up to 18 acres of land surrounding their hive, they also provide their onlookers with valuable lessons. Beyond raising awareness of the importance of protecting bees, which are a vital part of our ecosystem, companies have found that there is much to be learned about productivity, conservation, teamwork and leadership from the small insect colonies. Bonner has proven that unconventional ways of bringing joy, inspiration and education to companies is beneficial to everyone involved, including the planet.
Industry: Environmental Services
Year Founded: 2014
Headquarters: Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
