Whether you’re experience as a beekeeper is a beginner, master, or somewhere in between, you’ll love what we have planned for November 4, 2023. Find all the details here, just keep scrolling, and then register to attend.

Our one day conference is packed with awesome speakers, relevant beekeeping topics, exhibits, and prizes. Plus, lunch is included. There are breakout sessions throughout the day, so you can even customize your experience. See you there!

REGISTRATION

Securely register to attend the 4-States Beekeeping Conference through the Joplin Area Beekeepers Association Square link. The $60/person includes all the presentations you want to watch, lunch, exhibits to browse, and your chance to win prizes.

  • Date: November 4, 2023
  • Time: 8-5 p.m.
  • Location: Missouri Southern State University, Joplin, MO
  • Cost: $60/person
REGISTER NOW

SPEAKERS/TOPICS

We’ve got an amazing line-up of speakers and topics read to go for our 2023 conference. Find them below with links to learn more about them. Bonus, download our schedule to refer back to any time.

Ellen Bell (Building a Honey Bee Operation, Queen Rearing in Your Back Yard):

She’s the owner of Bell Farm located in Runnells, Iowa. Now in her 10th year of beekeeping, she focuses on grafting and raising local queens, supplying Iowa wintered nucs to beekeepers around the Midwest, and teaching a variety of beekeeping classes online. You can learn more about her business on her website, www.iowabees.com.

Katie Kilmer (The Status of Pollinators in Our Changing Environment):

She is an Associate Professor of Biology and Environmental Health at Missouri Southern State University (MSSU) and has graduate degrees in both. Katie teaches courses in conservation, ecology, and geographic information systems (GIS), and her research interests include aquatic ecology, ecotoxicology, applications of GIS, and pollinator biology. She manages the university’s apiary, oversees multiple pollinator habitat restoration projects on campus, and serves as faculty mentor for the MSSU Pollinators Club. Katie’s focus is on improving resources for native pollinating species largely through habitat restoration. When she finds free time, she enjoys reading, being with her family and teaching individuals of all ages more about the natural world and the importance of all pollinators.

Ed Levi (Bee Overseas, I.P.M into Your Operation):

He began his career in France where he graduated from a college beekeeping program and kept bees for 5 years (in the 70’s). In the late 70’s while owning a beekeeping business in Arkansas, he became the Apiary Specialist and Inspector for the Arkansas State Plant Board. During that time, he did a lot of association building and teaching throughout the US and was an officer of the Apiary Inspectors of America. Ed is an EAS Master Beekeeper, retired from the Plant Board after 26 years, and is still beekeeping. A large part of the last 30+ years he’s volunteered as an USAID consultant, teaching about beekeeping in developing countries in South America, Asia, Africa, and Eastern Europe. Ed sold his commercial business in 2018 (queen breeding, pollination, and honey production), and in 2019 organized (and still manages) a queen breeding cooperative in NW Arkansas where his goal is to develop and distribute queens with high levels of hygienic behavior. He was awarded the Volunteer of the Year for the USAID Farmer to Farmer Program in 2021, and is now finishing up a research project in Madagascar with a grant from the Eastern Apicultural Society and in cooperation with the Farmer to Farmer program. Ed’s also managing bees for the Fayetteville Public Library and Botanical Gardens of the Ozarks. Watch Ed install bees at the Fayetteville Public Library.

Cory Stevens (The Advantages of Virgin Queens, Cell Builders that Perform):

He’s traveling from his 27 acre farm in Bloomfield, MO, to present at our conference! Cory manages his farm for wildlife and pollinator habitat and he and his wife Jamie own Stevens Bee Company where they breed mite and disease resistant bees. Cory is a past president of the Missouri State Beekeepers Assoc., and earned a MS in entomology from the University of Nebraska. He was certified as a Master Beekeeper by the Eastern Apicultural Society in 2013, and trained with Sue Cobey in 2014 to instrumentally inseminate queen bees. In his spare time, Corey loves to randomly slip bees into conversations with strangers, and annoy his wife by constantly talking about bees. Follow him on Facebook.

Natalee Summers (Younger Beekeepers, Strong Hives Coming Out of Winter):

She might be young – 15 years old – but she has a lot of experience to share! A beekeeper from NW MIssouri, Natalee’s journey began in 2017, when her family started their apiary and business, known as Hitch Hive Honey. Natalee quickly found an interest in beekeeping and continued learning about bees. She started a YouTube channel with the help of her parents in 2020 called Beekeeping with Natalee. Natalee loves grafting queens, which has led to nearly 1,000 grafts in the last few years. She has many goals that she hopes to accomplish, including almond pollination in CA and being the youngest person to complete the Master Beekeeping program at the University of Florida. She’s excited to see where her passion for bees takes her.

More to come!

DOWNLOAD THE SCHEDULE

EXHIBITS

The conference will also have exhibits you can browse whenever there’s a free moment. The booths can be found in the hallways outside the main stage. You might find products and service you didn’t know are available in our region. There will also be beekeeping clubs set up, so you can learn where they are and what they offer. Don’t limit yourself, many beekeepers attend more than one each month.

Check back regularly. We plan to add the list of exhibitors closer to the event date.

QUESTIONS?

There are several ways to reach us, if you have questions: