The four-time world champion has flown to Japan to help launch his ‘Buzzin’ Corner’ campaign, which is part of his ongoing effort to raise awareness for biodiversity.
As well as Suzuka repainting the Turn 2 kerbs in bee colours to show its support for Vettel’s plan, it also helped erect 11 insect hotels which will sit in an area on the inside of the long opening section of the track.
Speaking on an Instagram post on his channel on Wednesday, Vettel said that the choice of colours for his project was deliberate as the bee was a good icon for raising public awareness.
“We all know one insect is very famous, and it’s the bee,” he said. “The bee is yellow and black, and it’s the perfect ambassador for us around this project.
“The idea is to highlight the importance of biodiversity, because it stands not just for the bee but for all the other insects. So, we sort of use the bee as our ambassador, and she will help us to hopefully stress this very powerful message back there.”
Vettel has invited all of F1’s drivers and team bosses to a special launch of the project, which will take place at Suzuka on Thursday afternoon.
Having spent the last few days helping build the insect hotels, Vettel said: “It’s very exciting, and a lot of work and passion went into the project, and it is great to have you all on board.
“It is nice to be back in Suzuka and hopefully this is just the beginning of an initiative and projects around the world leading to more yellow and black kerbs at racetracks and more habitat and space for insects.”
He added: “We have to celebrate variety, not just in human beings but also in nature, and we have to protect it. That’s really close to my heart and that’s what I want to stress here and raise awareness now.”
Vettel retired from F1 at the end of last year, having spent his last years in F1 pushing hard to raise awareness for the environment.