Use insect-friendly soaps and sealants

Chemical pollutants in soaps for washing cars and building exteriors and in coal-tar-based driveway sealants can harm a variety of insect life. Kawahara recommends swapping these out for biodegradable soaps and soy-based sealants. In winter, trading rock salt for salt-free formulations is safer for both insects and pets.

Become an insect ambassador

In the U.S., insects have historically been depicted as devourers of crops, disease vectors and hallmarks of poor sanitation, even though the vast majority do not harm humans. Kawahara said rethinking your own stereotypes of insects and gaining a better understanding of their beauty, diversity and roles is a first step in helping others appreciate them, too.

He recalled leading schoolchildren on an insect-collecting trip during which a student found an elephant stag beetle, an enormous insect with massive jaws – “one of the coolest, most amazing bugs,” Kawahara said.

The student wanted to step on the beetle, thinking it was a cockroach.

“Other students were grossed out, too,” Kawahara said. “When I saw that, I was dumbfounded. If this was Japan, kids would be clamoring to be the first to get it and keep it as a pet. The juxtaposition of those cultural reactions was striking.”

He pointed to media characterizations of Asian giant hornets – which he grew up seeing drink sap from the oak tree outside of Tokyo – as “murder hornets” as another example of how framing insects as dangerous or disgusting has the power to evoke strong reactions from the public.

As antidotes to unfounded fears, walk outdoors to look for local insect life or adopt pet insects, a simple, inexpensive way to introduce children to science, Kawahara said. Documenting what you see on platforms such as iNaturalist not only helps you learn more about your finds, but also provides data for scientific research.

These small steps have the power to effect immediate changes for the planet’s insects, Kawahara said.

“The best way for change to happen quickly is for everyone to pitch in. As individuals, we can all do these kinds of activities right away.”