Erica Leigh Shelley

PhD, CEO and Founder

Erica Shelley, PhD, is the founder and CEO of Best for Bees, Ltd. (established in 2010) and located in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. She has served as the Chairperson for Bee City Kitchener since 2018, an organization that advocates for pollinators.

Dr. Shelley received her B.A. (Biology) from Johns Hopkins University in 1994 and her Ph.D. (Molecular and Medical Genetics) from Oregon Health and Sciences University in 2000, studying yeast and DNA repair. She is also a graduate of the Wilfred Laurier Women’s Entrepreneurship program. Dr. Shelley has taught at the University of Toronto, the University of Waterloo and Conestoga College.

Dr. Shelley straddles the beekeeper/researcher roles by providing honey bee-related research services integrating her microbiology background with practical beekeeping experience. Through Best for Bees, Dr. Shelley and her company offer consulting services, research, and product development related to honeybee and bumblebee health and pollination. Best for Bees also maintains hives for companies, libraries, and individuals, emphasizing pollinator education.

In early 2020 Dr. Shelley was recruited to assist with Dr. Peter Kevan’s apivectoring projects at the University of Guelph. Utilizing her beekeeping knowledge, she invented ProtectaBEE™, an all-in-one hive entrance that integrates bee vectoring technology with a plug and play system to protect the hive from predators.

The mission of Best for Bees, which is also her mission, is to “Save the Bees, One Colony at a Time.” By bringing together scientists, engineers, beekeepers, and designers worldwide, we can collaboratively improve bee health and secure our food supply chain.