Ben works for Bee Downtown as the Principal Beekeeper and Chief Culture Officer…. He usually just says Chief apiCulture Officer. He manages 6 full time beekeepers and roughly 500 colonies in highly public areas in 6 states. Prior to joining the Bee Downtown team as the Lead Beekeeper, he worked in bee research for several years where he helped manage hundreds of colonies while conducting studies that furthered our knowledge of how bees interact with pesticides. Prior to entering the beekeeping world, he worked in higher education for a decade where he managed a multitude of educational and developmental programs at a variety of institutions and even started, and coached, a women’s rugby team! To top it all off, he is Journeyman beekeeper in NC (so close to Master!) and Certified Level One Honey Analysis and Sensory Expert.