Dear Anonymous,

A new study shows that a common type of bee-killing pesticide is damaging the brains of baby bees.1

We've known for years that neonicotinoids can be deadly to bees, causing colony collapse.2 But this new study shows that the pesticides are irreversibly harming brain growth and development in the babies of the colonies.3

Environment Colorado is working to ban the worst uses of neonicotinoids, and there's an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) review of some harmful neonics happening right now.

Will you donate to support our campaign to save the bees, and all of our work to defend the environment? Make a donation by midnight tonight, and your gift will be matched dollar for dollar, up to $20,000 nationwide.

Over the past 25 years, neonicotinoid use has ramped up dramatically, leading to the colony collapse we see today. But that's not just bad news for bees -- it's an emergency for the entire planet.

Because they're nature's best pollinators, the disappearance of bees is a threat for many other species and even our food supply.4 And despite all the evidence that these pesticides are disastrous, their use in the U.S. is widespread.

Neonicotinoids work by attacking an insect's nerve cells.5 The new research found that baby bees are exposed when worker bees bring contaminated food back to the colony. This exposure impacts brain development and growth, causing smaller brains and impaired brain function in adulthood.

Make your Earth Day gift before midnight tonight, and generous donors will double your impact by matching it dollar for dollar, up to $20,000 nationwide.

Bees exposed to neonicotinoids are less able to learn and perform tasks as adults, potentially affecting their ability to navigate and forage for food. The damage is permanent and irreversible.6

The European Union banned neonicotinoids last year, and four U.S. states have limited their use.7

And yet the EPA is considering the reauthorization of the most common bee-killing neonics, and there are only a few days left for the public to weigh in. We're mobilizing to collect thousands of public comments to show that Colorado wants bees protected.

We still need to protect our national forests and stop offshore drilling, but right now, we're telling the EPA that it must ban the most problematic uses of bee-killing pesticides.

Anonymous, will you donate today?

Thank you,

Hannah Collazo
State Director

P.S. Our work to defend the environment can't stop and won't stop in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. We'll keep advocating on your behalf -- at a safe social distance -- for clean air, clean water, clean energy, wildlife and open spaces, and a livable climate.

1. Katie Hunt, "Pesticides damage the brains of baby bees, new research finds," CNN, March 3, 2020.
2. Erik Stokstad, "European agency concludes controversial 'neonic' pesticides threaten bees," Science Magazine, February 28, 2018.
3. Katie Hunt, "Pesticides damage the brains of baby bees, new research finds," CNN, March 3, 2020.
4. Katie Hunt, "Pesticides damage the brains of baby bees, new research finds," CNN, March 3, 2020.
5. Lauren Aratani, "Pesticide widely used in US particularly harmful to bees, study finds," The Guardian, August 6, 2019.
6. Katie Hunt, "Pesticides damage the brains of baby bees, new research finds," CNN, March 3, 2020.
7. Erik Stokstad, "European agency concludes controversial 'neonic' pesticides threaten bees," Science Magazine, February 28, 2018.