Three years ago, Franz Hollinger made the bold decision to transform the outdoor areas of all ZKB-owned branches into wild bee-friendly habitats. Three years later, Zürcher Kantonalbank is already opening its tenth biodiverse wild bee paradise. The energetic real estate portfolio manager infects many people with his enthusiasm and believes that promoting biodiversity should be a matter of course for every company today! It all started with a self-built wild bee hotel and a knowledge-hungry fourth-grader: his daughter Elin.
Franz Hollinger has been working at Zürcher Kantonalbank for about ten years. His business card says "Real Estate Manager". But it could just as easily say "Real Life Initiator" – as he is the founder of 32 wild bee paradises, which will be created at all ZKB-owned branch locations in the coming years. Wildbiene + Partner designs biodiverse areas with various nesting aids for wild bees based on the principles of permaculture. The largest wild bee paradise realized so far covers a proud 2000 square meters and will be inaugurated this spring in Kloten.
However, at the beginning of this story is not Franz Hollinger as a wild bee hero, but a sweet little wild bee heroine: his then nine-year-old daughter Elin, who planned and built a wild bee hotel herself as part of a school project in the fourth grade. He actively supported her with hammering, gluing, and sawing – and as an environmentally conscious person, his curiosity was piqued. The real estate expert began to research wild bees on the internet – and was fascinated by the inconspicuous creatures and their key function in the biodiversity cycle.
Biodiverse floral splendor as an eye-catcher
An idea took shape in his mind – and he acted: In the outdoor area of the ZKB branch in Eglisau, after consultation with the responsible parties, he was allowed to create the first three small wildflower islands with planted brick planters. Already in the first summer, it buzzed and hummed with life. The biodiverse floral splendor attracted wild bees, who enjoyed the nectar, and customers and employees alike enjoyed the colorful display, where for years only monotonous lawn had been. In 2019, the groundbreaking pilot project with Claudio Sedivy and Wildbiene + Partner took place with a 300 square meter pilot wild bee paradise in front of the branch in Männedorf. The project was very well received, equally by bank customers and employees. "I presented the project for the promotion of wild bees, among other things, on the intranet, which elicited many positive reactions," says Franz Hollinger. He always proceeded step by step, he emphasizes, it was important to him not to rush into anything. He views this careful approach retrospectively as one of the project's success factors.
But even those who consciously take small steps must eventually make a big leap: For Franz Hollinger, it was the presentation of his project idea to the company's top management. He, who as a real estate portfolio manager primarily deals with the strategy of company properties, had developed the ambitious plan to transform the outdoor areas of all ZKB-owned branches to be wild bee-friendly and biodiverse. "I prepared very well and packaged the story of the pilot project in Männedorf into targeted storytelling," says Franz Hollinger. "But of course, I expected some pushback – after all, it involved an investment. My colleague and I therefore also had a Plan B up our sleeves," he says. What happened next was unexpected and positive for him and his colleague: The top management gave immediate green light for the project – unreservedly for all locations of the company's own properties.
Wild Bee Paradises on the Doorstep
It probably helped that at the time the report "Nature is too big to fail" by the consulting firm Pricewaterhouse Coopers in cooperation with the environmental organization WWF was making headlines. This report states that the loss of biodiversity threatens financial market stability and that rapid action is needed. "I felt taken very seriously by the executives of my employer from the beginning. As environmentally conscious people, they immediately understood what it was about" – and ultimately gave him the legitimacy for his dedicated commitment to wild bees with their blessing. "Making biodiversity visible and tangible – right on your own doorstep – that convinced the stakeholders," says Franz Hollinger.
Tenth wild bee paradise already completed
The project’s funding was secured – yet the work of convincing various stakeholders had only just begun. Ignorance and skepticism had to be dispelled, and concerns addressed – requiring educational and persuasive efforts. The classic: Bees are dangerous, they sting. Or the assumption that a biodiverse wild bee paradise entails high maintenance costs. However, the opposite is true: It is cheaper to maintain because native wild plant species are less labor-intensive in the long term than, for example, ornamental shrubs. Also from a sustainability perspective, it is very important to Franz Hollinger to involve the facility management from the outset and win them over to the cause of wild bees and biodiversity.
At some locations, issues such as safety and cleaning also frequently need to be considered. "If we unseal an area, safety must still be guaranteed – and the cleaning crew must still be able to approach the building with their large machines." However, the expertise lies not with him, but with Wildbiene + Partner – he sees his role as bringing the different stakeholders together.
He does this with such contagious enthusiasm that the tenth wild bee paradise is already being opened this spring. By the time the project is completed in 2023, a total of 32 wild bee havens will have been brought to bloom across over 6500 square meters.
Private initiatives thanks to wild bee paradises
The fact that the conditions at each location differ greatly makes the project organizationally demanding – and yet, in his eyes, it is a great stroke of luck. "In this way, we achieve optimal broad impact. I am surprised myself that our commitment to wild bees constantly gives rise to new private initiatives." For example, at certain locations, students from the local school get involved, training courses for biodiversity awareness are being planned at the initiative of an environmental protection organization – and even a request from the canton landed on Franz Hollinger's desk.
Time and again, it is also the employees themselves who think along and contribute – even from corporate divisions far removed from the branches. "That's how it starts to come alive!" says Franz Hollinger. In addition, the wild bee-friendly design of the outdoor areas already leads to other related topics, such as the question of the optimal greening of a flat roof or a facade during renovations. Franz Hollinger is always the first point of contact in connection with biodiversity-promoting redesign. "Over time, I've become more and more uncompromising," he says of himself. The wild bee hotel, by the way, that he built with his daughter back then, is still in the same spot in his garden – and is densely populated with wild bees. He sees that time passes mainly in his daughter Elin: The little wild bee heroine of yesteryear is now 17 years old and currently on a school exchange in Canada.
About Franz Hollinger
Franz Hollinger is a real estate portfolio manager at Zürcher Kantonalbank and the initiator of 32 biodiverse wild bee paradises, which will be brought to bloom across over 6500 square meters by 2023. The tenth ZKB wild bee paradise will open this spring in Kloten. The 54-year-old is a father of three adult children and lives in Baden.
