Dr Ryad Alsous is a Syrian academic and expert beekeeper.

He was a distinguished Professor of Food Science at Damascus University in Syria and the founder of the University's Beekeeping Department Programme. In 2013, his family were forced to flee Syria, becoming refugees in the United Kingdom.

After resettling in Huddersfield, he used his love and knowledge of bees to establish the Buzz Project. Its aim is to help refugees and the long-term unemployed find a sense of purpose through beekeeping. Ryad continues to research breeding of Britain’s native black bee, while enabling his community to prosper and preserve nature sustainability.