A BEEutiful charity for October! [Stickers, badge, double gems, and more!]

Hey BoBCats!

Another October means another charity. Due to some complications, we've had to hold this event a bit later than usual, but we hope to make it up to you with this year's very special additions. This year we will be supporting the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Protection. Xerces's mission is to focus on the conversation of pollinators and many other special invertebrate that provide for planet Earth. These special little bugs support our ecosystem, especially with the food supply. Lately though, pollinator populations have been declining. Whether this is from pesticides, harmful parasites, or local tragedies, our delightful little friends are tragically dying off. These bees, butterflies, and more are vital to global agriculture and must be preserved. Hence why chose this year's charity to be the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Protection.

Xerces supports this deficit is many ways. With suitable training, habitat management, and more, the charity ultimately tries their best to protect Earth's little pollinators.

- The charity focuses on long-term projects that ultimately assist in protecting the habitats of pollinators. "Two such projects in Portland, OR, include a large-scale grassland restoration project by the Port of Portland and the restoration of a powerline corridor that runs through Forest Park," quotes their website. This includes overall monitoring the population and assisting in identifying these species. Overall, their company also curates a special guidance for these habitats that at-risk keepers use to benefit their pollinators.
- Xerces also holds training. This ranges from community science projects, bee monitoring protocals, and teaching educators how to advocate for their beloved invertebrates. More specifically, one community science program called Bumble Bee Watch focuses on teaching younger generations about our pollinators and their ecology. The website also keeps track of the populations of bees in general with a focus on conversing species' that are rare/endangered.
- You can get involved too! Due to COVID-19, many in-person projects are being withdrawn, but there are still many ways to assist. Webinars are constantly being held to spread info. You can also volunteer online or in-person! If you're looking for something more though, job opportunities are available too. '
- Sign the Pollinator Protection Pledge to help too! It only takes a few seconds.

"How can I donate and where will my money go?"

As always, donations will be held through our Paypal Pool under Beasts of Beyond's financial account. After November 30th, all of these funds will be donated to the charity accordingly! When finalized, an update thread will be posted, just like the previous two years on the results of our donations. I can't wait to see what happens this year!

"Why should I donate and what's in it for me?"

These animals are ESSENTIAL to our lives. Their benefits towards crops are beneficial to our food source and without them, the world's agriculture will collapse. If you support this cause today, you will receive a few things:

- You'll get a special Xerces Bee Badge to flaunt your donation! [Image: 109-mini.png]

Look at how cute that is. <3
- A specialized rank that gives you a very spiffy color within the site's 'Users Online' section.
- DOUBLE the amount of gems for donating! Usually it's 5,000 gems per dollar, but this time it's 10,000 gems! $$$ x 10000 is quite a lot of gems!

"Stickers? That's new!"

This year we're also including a NEW WAY to donate! With three gorgeous artists, we've created some stickers for you to purchase. Each sticker is $3 and 100% of the proceeds go towards the charity too. All payments are eligible for the above rewards also, so make sure to claim your rewards in this thread. Also please give a big thank you to [member=227]tikki[/member] [member=874]rexaraneo[/member] [member=6]threecaballeros[/member] for creating these gorgeous stickers. View our shop for more information!

Here are your options:

BEE SCARED BY ANDY:

BEESTS OF BEYOND BY REX:

BEEWITCHED BY TIKKI:

Along with this, we'd like to give another special thank you to [member=20]Reggan[/member] for creating this theme's beautiful animated header. We encourage you to check out every artist's work and give them a thank you for their contributions!

— DONATE NOW! —

Donate here! As of right now, our current goal is $300, but let's go past that. Our pollinators are important so let's give them the love they deserve.

Don't want to just donate though? Buy some stickers from our shop. 100% goes to the charity.

Thank you and regards,
Beasts of Beyond Staff