Many similarities exist between democratic societies and beehives. Both reach decisions by consensus and benefit from diverse viewpoints and a principle of mutual cooperation through working together. In beehives, the consensus is reached through waggle dancing in which scout bees advertise the location of potential new homes to the rest of the hive. Consensus in democracies is achieved through debate and discussion. The diversity of viewpoints in beehives informs the colony of decisions about where to live, what to eat, and how to defend itself. In democratic societies, diversity aids in ensuring that all voices are heard, and the best decisions are made. In beehives, working together ensures the colony’s survival, while in democratic societies, citizens work together to ensure the common good.
Beehives and democratic societies also have their differences that should be considered. They differ in their leadership, their hierarchy, and their motivation. In the beehive, there is only one leader, the queen bee. She is the only fertile female, lays all the eggs, and is responsible for the entire colony’s health and welfare. There is no single leader in a democracy, and power is distributed among the people who elect representatives to decide on their behalf. The queen bee is at the top of the hierarchy in a beehive, with the worker bees at the bottom. In a democracy, there should be no hierarchy. All citizens have the same rights and responsibilities and are equal. The motivation in a beehive is survival. Bees are motivated to find food, build homes, and fend off predators. The motivation in democratic societies is to create a better life and to provide for the common good, such as education, health care, and infrastructure.
Suppose we propose regenerating education and our world because of the connection between all living and non-living things. We must then strive to understand the similarities and differences between nature and ourselves, followed by establishing the regenerative principles needed to develop the change and transformation we seek. From beehives and democratic societies, we have seen how they both benefit from the principles of consensus, diversity of viewpoints, and mutual cooperation. We must also ask ourselves what we can learn from their differences in the role of leadership, their nature of hierarchy, and the motivation of worker bees versus citizens.