In tropical Asian communities, men traditionally engaged in honey hunting and gathering. Today, beekeeping and honey production are becoming a family home gardening pursuit involving women and children as well. The hive honeybee Apis cerana is indigenous to Asia, 80% of the flora in tropical Asia is pollinated by honeybees, and A. cerana is the only economically manageable species.
People living in humid tropical evergreen regions in Asia viewed their biodiversity as an inexhaustible resources for continuing utilization and sustainability. Urbanization and increased rural poverty have contributed to a rapid loss of biodiversity, affecting the livelihoods of rural communities. Therefore to mitigate or altogether reverse this vicious cycle, methods must be devised to generate income sustainably through the conservation of biodiversity. In this context, “beekeeping for honey production†is a champion which has many added advantages. Rural beekeepers could potentially become change agents in tropical evergreen forest areas by developing model local honey production resource centers for others to emulate.