I’m an educator, artist, Master Gardener and the author/illustrator of a Bee Named BOB and Andrena a Mining Bee. But mostly I’m bee-sotted with the diversity of our native bees. I wrote and illustrated these books when surprisingly, I found only books about non-native honey bees in my local library system.
I’ve taken numerous taxonomy workshops to learn how to identify pollinators and completed the requirements for Apprentice Level Certification of the Oregon Bee Atlas Master Melittologist Program. I am also a member of the Native Bee Society of BC.
I’m the Citizen Science Coordinator for the Thompson Shuswap Master Gardeners, organizing workshops and pollinator counts with adults and children. I get a buzz out of presenting my books to kids as well as adults in schools, libraries and events.
I have a Bachelor of Arts in English and Sociology from the University of Victoria and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Arts from Thompson Rivers University. I’ve exhibited in western Canada, in the US and in Uji Japan.
I am grateful to live on the unceded traditional lands of the Secwepemc Nation, in southern British Columbia, Canada. These semi-desert bunchgrass grasslands support a vast diversity of bees.
The first thing I do on a summer morning is to brew a cup of tea and go searching for what’s buzzing in my garden!
What People Say
Elaine’s enthusiastic promotion of the benefits of native wild bees shines through and she obviously enjoys passing on her knowledge to the general public. Her presentations are entertaining and encourage people to pay more attention to all of the tiny and not so tiny insects which inhabit our gardens.
Margaret Graham, Program Chair, Kamloops Adult Learners Society
Elaine has worked tirelessly to communicate the beautiful narrative of our native flowering plants and their diverse pollinators in the British Columbia interior. She has persisted in her studies and can now recognize many rare and obscure native bees in western Canada. Her two books are a testimonial to her love for these amazing little creatures which she is passing on to the next generation of melittologists.
Lincoln Best, Taxonomist, Oregon Bee Atlas, Oregon State University
Elaine Sedgman is just marvelous with children and groups. Her presentations are engaging, interactive, hands-on, and full of cool facts and information about pollinators. Her excellent storytelling skills draw everyone into the activities and stories. When Elaine presents to our campers, they have loads of fun and learn while doing. I highly recommend Elaine Sedgman as a pollinator resource for your classroom.
Susan Hammond, Operator, BIG Little Science Centre
Bee Stories Publishing 