Honey with a heart: Beekeeper empowers communities, inspires ethical production

IN the Eastern Highlands of Nyanga, a unique scene unfolds. Villagers, travelling on foot, using a bicycle or even “scotch carts,” trek up a hillside. Their destination? A humble home nestled on the slope, where they arrive not with empty hands but with buckets brimming with honey.

The reason for their journey? Charles Hamilton, a beekeeper with a remarkable mission. He builds beehives, transports them to surrounding communities and freely distributes them to anyone interested. There’s just one catch, a single request Hamilton has for those who receive his beehives.

“If you let me teach you how to keep bees ethically and sustainably, and you don’t spray pesticides on the plants that they pollinate, then you can bring the honey that your bees produce to me and I’ll buy it from you,” said his son Cian Hamilton narrating his father’s story of how he is uplifting local communities and inspiring the world to environmentally friendly ways of making honey.

“Some months my dad gets two tonnes of honey delivered to him from the local communities by whatever mode of transport they can manage. My dad then processes the honey naturally, packages it and sells it in the city.

“Some people might think this is a pretty good way to make money but you see, my dad believes in paying people fairly. In fact, I’m almost certain that he pays more for his honey than anyone else in the country.

He also believes in making his honey affordable because he knows that a lot of people can’t afford luxuries like honey. So, after everything, my dad barely makes a dollar for each jar of honey he sells,” said Cian.

Despite lucrative offers to sell or expand his beekeeping business, Charles has consistently refused. The reason? No potential buyer could guarantee upholding his ethical and sustainable methods of natural honey production.
How did Charles end up in Nyanga helping villagers earn money through beekeeping?

“So, my dad lives up in the mountains in the Eastern Highlands in Zimbabwe in a little house in the middle of nowhere with no internet and just enough solar electricity to power his lights and charge his phone.

“His mother built that little house with her bare hands, and she and my grandad are both buried in the garden under an apple tree. And every morning my dad sits on the bench beside that tree and drinks his coffee with them. The place where he lives might just be the most beautiful place in the entire world,” said Cian.

Charles’ generosity has earned him the respect and admiration of the local communities. “Needless to say, my dad isn’t doing this for money. He’s doing it because he believes in helping people. He believes in protecting nature.

He believes that communities should look after each other. He believes in the goodness of human beings,” he said.
Cian has started a Go Fund Me to raise money so that his father can assist as many people as possible.

“That being said, unfortunately money is a necessity in this life. And in order for my dad to keep helping people and support communities to keep protecting bees and the ecosystems, he needs money.

“So, that’s why I’m here appealing for funds online. And if you believe in what he’s doing as much as I do, even the smallest donation would mean the world to him.”