This brief provides an overview of how the EU pollinator agenda – a set of initiatives and policies at the EU policy level to tackle pollinator decline – came to be, and summarises indirect drivers of such decline, linked to the diverse (and diverging) perspectives on pollinators in both policy and practice. While highlighting the important role of current policies and increased knowledge, the brief conveys a message of urgency, calling for necessary action in governance, policy and practice to support a positive change for pollinators.

This policy brief is produced as part of the Horizon 2020 Safeguard project. The brief is based on research conducted at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), focused on indirect drivers of pollinator loss linked to values, institutions and governance. It also covers the outcomes of a Safeguard Buzzing Table, organised by the IUCN and SLU in February 2024. The Buzzing Table involved key EU stakeholders active in different policy areas of relevance to pollinators.