Florence Barbara Awino

Among the 20,000 bee species worldwide, the Meliponini tribe consists of stingless bees, a group belonging to the family Apidae and subfamily Meliponini, found in Neotropical regions (Michener, 2007). In the Neotropics, 440 species of stingless bees have been described, with 259 species found in Brazil (Nogueira, 2023). Stingless bees display a wide variety of behaviors, life habits, and nesting substrates, thriving in both natural and urbanized environments (Nogueira, 2023; Roubik, 2023).

INTRODUCTION Ensuring access to safe food is paramount for maintaining healthy well-being (Fung et al., 2018; Gang et al., 2019). However, concerns about food safety-related incidents have been reported globally (Dharni & Sharma, 2008; Lam et al., 2013; MacLaurin et al., 2000), notably, the potential consumer exposure risks associated with the globalization of food production, trade, and tourism (Jeddi et al., 2022; Musoke et al., 2016; Nayak & Waterson, 2019).

Digitalization has increased instances and the intensification of online violence within the digital sphere due to anonymity, automation, remote action, easy accessibility, and dissemination. Consequently, victims are being silenced and pushed out of digital spaces. Online gender-based violence is an action by one or more people that harm others based on their sexual or gender identity or by enforcing harmful gender norms.