Angelina Jolie: We can all step in and do our part to save the bees

21 May 2021

Angelina Jolie has urged people to “step in” and “do [their] part” to help save the bees.

Angelina Jolie

The 45-year-old actress has teamed up with National Geographic to celebrate World Bee Day on Thursday (20.05.21), and has said it’s now more important than ever to make conscious choices that help to protect the crucial pollinators.

She told the magazine: "With so much we are worried about around the world and so many people feeling overwhelmed with bad news and the reality of what is collapsing, this is one that we can manage. We can certainly all step in and do our part.

“I don't think a lot of people know what damage they're doing. A lot of people are just trying to get through their day. They want to do good. They don't want to be destructive. They don't know which thing to buy. They don't know which thing to use. So I think part of this is wanting to help it be simple for everybody.”

Angelina also said it’s up to everyone to pitch in however they can.

She added: "I have six kids and a lot happening, and I don't know how to be the 'perfect' anything. And so if we can help each other to say, 'This is a way forward, simple, and this is something you can do with your kids.' "

To accompany her interview, the ‘Maleficent’ star posed for a photoshoot whilst covered in bees, and revealed she couldn’t shower for several days before the shoot because she had to smell as natural as possible.

She said: "It was so funny to be in hair and makeup and wiping yourself with pheromone. We couldn't shower for three days before. Because they told me, 'If you have all these different scents, shampoos and perfumes and things, the bee doesn't know what you are.' ... Then you put a few things up your nose and in your ears so you don't give them as many holes to climb in."

And Angelina said it felt “lovely to be connected to these beautiful creatures”.

She explained: "You have to be really still and in your body, in the moment, which is not easy for me. I think part of the thought behind it was, this creature is seen as dangerous sometimes or stinging. So how do we just be with it? The intention is we share this planet. We are affected by each other. This is what it should feel like and it really did, and I felt very honoured and very lucky to have the experience."