This is a broad study of 344 plots throughout Africa, Asia, and Latin America. This is from allAfrica division of UN News service. The article I am referencing is Africa: Bees Can Help Boost Food Security of Two Billion Small Farmers At No Cost retrieved from http://allafrica.com/stories/201602220806.html. This article details how important bees are for the pollination of crops. Pollination is a fundamental part of the growing process for crops and the significant majority of it is done by bees. This means for a successful food production and more importantly successful development of countries, bees must be protected and possibly production of honey could be coupled with farming large acreage of crops. Some effects of climate change have negative impacts on bee colonies as well so any actions to slow climate change would be beneficial for bees.

This study has to do with a range of citizens in Costa Rica. It is from the World Health Organization on government funded healthcare’s relation to life expectancy and the struggle for the government to continue funding. This is simply Case Study: Costa Rica, a link to the pdf is http://www.who.int/chp/knowledge/publications/case_study_costarica.pdf. In relation to this week’s subject, the study states that although the country is only 69^Th in GDP per capita, it is on the list of the top, “35 countries with the highest Human Development Index.” Funding is a significant problem with the design of this health service because of the large percent that falls on employers and employees with little help from taxes on controversial products.

In the rural area I grew up, there was always talk on how farmers would occasionally loss hives, honey bees are kept by some farmers to harvest honey. The talk was always regarding the cost or replacing bees seemed to increase but if protected hives are dying, how are the wild bees fairing? I hope that the dangerous to bee does not start harming the produce production of small farms in my area. For the second article it made me remember talking with my aunt who is a nurse in Maine. With the border to Canada being so close, many people go to Canada for healthcare which cuts the need for funding in the areas. There are only a few major hospitals in the whole state. Also, she remarked that even a few of her fellow employees live in Canada because it is cheaper to live in Canada and commute to work because of the healthcare available and better to work in healthcare in the United States because the pay is better here. I do agree that the service provided by healthcare workers is important and it is a shame that wages have to be lower just so healthcare can be provided, affordably to everyone.