Our Team

Katie is a marine conservation scientist and non-profit leader whose path into marine science began as a volunteer for Tethys Research Institute’s Ionian Dolphin Project. Originally from Hoyt, New Brunswick, Katie developed a love for the ocean through visits to the Bay of Fundy before pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology at St. Thomas University. Katie worked as an at-sea fisheries observer for the snow crab fishery along the Lower North Shore of Québec and as a marine science educator with Coastal Explorers in Newfoundland. She later earned a Master of Arts in Marine Conservation and Policy from Stony Brook University, studying the movements of whitespotted eagle rays in the Turks and Caicos using photographic identification, followed by a Ph.D. in Biology from Florida International University where she investigated the factors affecting stingray abundance and behaviour in the Caribbean. Following her Ph.D., she completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Mote Marine Laboratory and Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, partnering with a local fishing community in Belize to study environmental factors influencing stingray abundance. This work, alongside several other researchers, helped reduce shark landings during the study period.

Throughout her career, Katie has published 15 scientific papers, raised funding for conservation and science initiatives, and helped secure legislative changes in Belize for sharks and rays – including full protection of all ray species and expanded marine protected areas for reef sharks. Her work has spanned collaborative research with fishing communities, global shark and ray monitoring initiatives, and an effort to rescue and rehabilitate a critically endangered smalltooth sawfish in Florida.

Building on her scientific and community-based experience, Katie moved into organizational leadership as the Assistant Director of the Atlantic Canada Conservation Data Centre, a biodiversity conservation non-profit. There, she led a multidisciplinary team, supported strategic planning and Board relations, advanced Board priorities, and developed new policies focused on staff well-being and equity. She contributed to species at risk monitoring including work with bumble bees, an endangered endemic butterfly, and freshwater mussels.

As Executive Director, Katie brings together her interdisciplinary background in anthropology, conservation, and science to support the Canadian Whale Institute’s mission and team. She is passionate about building strong partnerships, fostering inclusive and supportive workplaces, conducting science in support of endangered species recovery, and advancing conservation approaches that recognize people as central to lasting success.

Connect with Katie here.

Moira was raised in Montreal QC and developed her passion for the ocean during family seaside vacations in New Hampshire. After her first career in physical education, the pull of the oceans brought her to the Bay of Fundy to volunteer for a right whale research study in 1985. She has returned every year since and finally made Campobello Island her year-round home in 2016.

Moira is CWI’s director of science. Her research includes studies on the distribution, population biology and genetics of North Atlantic right whales. Her work has appeared in numerous publications, including Marine Mammal Science, Journal of Cetacean Research and Management, Marine Policy, Ecology and Evolution, Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, Journal of Mammalogy, Conservation Genetics, Fishery Bulletin, Molecular Ecology, and many more.

Moira was the lead author for Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Canadian Recovery Strategy for North Atlantic Right Whales for compliance with the Species at Risk Act legislation, in 2009.

Moira’s conservation work is focused on vessel collisions with right whales in Atlantic Canadian waters. She served as co-chair of the Canadian North Atlantic Right Whale Implementation Team and the Canadian Vessel/Whale working group. Working with the shipping industry, scientists at Dalhousie University (Halifax, NS), Canadian government regulators and the International Maritime Organization, she was instrumental in developing two conservation measures that substantially reduce the risk of vessel strikes of right whales in the Bay of Fundy and the waters south of Nova Scotia.

Moira’s achievements were recognized with a Gulf of Maine Visionary Award in 2002, a Canadian Environment Award in 2003, a lifetime achievement award from the International Fund for Animal Welfare in 2006, the Environmental Stewardship Award from the Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership in 2009 and a Doctor of Laws (honoris causa) from Mount Allison University in 2012.

Her work continues - focused on the human-related threats to right whales in Atlantic Canadian waters and the identification of conservation measures to reduce the effect of human activities on right whale numbers. She presently serves on four committees: The North Atlantic Right Whale- Vessel Interactions Advisory Working Group, the Right Whale-Large Vessel Interactions Technical Sub-Committee; the Right Whale-Fishing Vessel Interactions Technical Sub-Committee and North Atlantic Right Whale Technical Working Group.

Prior to joining CWI full time, she was Program Director, Right Whale Population Studies, at the Center for Coastal Studies, in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, where she also trained in whale rescue techniques. She is an Emeritus Scientist, at the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, in Boston, Massachusetts. Moira is one of only five expert whale disentanglers recognized by Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

Mackie was born and raised on Campobello Island and by the age of 13 owned his first boat. He worked on fishing boats and in fish processing plants throughout high school. After graduating, Mackie studied navigation at New Brunswick Community College (NBCC) in St. Andrews, NB. He continued his education at Holland College Marine Training Center, in Summerside, PEI and at the Caraquet School of Fisheries.

Mackie has been a licensed captain since 1990 and has owned and operated Island Cruises Marine Adventure Ltd, a whale watch business on Campobello Island, since 1995. In the winter months he fished lobsters and scallops. For many years he taught Navigation and Marine Safety courses at NBCC. He also worked as the Marine Operations Manager for the New England Aquarium’s Right Whale Research team.

In 2002 he helped set up the Campobello Whale Rescue Team. With Canadian government support, Mac and other team members undertook whale rescue training at the Center for Coastal Studies in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Mackie holds a Level 5 Whale Disentanglement certification, one of an elite group on the eastern seaboard, certified by NOAA to disentangle right whales in USA waters. He served as the Canadian Large Whale Disentanglement Coordinator at the Center for Coastal Studies. Mackie is one of only five expert whale disentanglers recognized by Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

Mackie’s contributions to whale conservation have been widely recognized. He has received the Animal Action Award from the International Fund for Animal Welfare, a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012 and, on July 1, 2020, Mackie, and Joe Howlett, were each awarded the Governor General’s Meritorious Service Cross which “celebrates Canadians who have performed an exceptional deed or activity that brings honour to Canada.”

Born and raised on Campobello Island, Pauline grew up with an appreciation for the environment of the Bay of Fundy and everything that thrives in it. Her family was active in purse seining and was among the first to farm salmon in the waters around Campobello.

Pauline studied business and technology at New Brunswick Community College. When not working at CWI, Pauline is outdoors tending her bee hives, chickens and vegetable gardens or working with Cat Rescue Maritimes (CARMA,) an organization that she introduced to Campobello Island.

Brenna is the coordinator of the Marine Mammal Summer Camp and is currently a research associate with the Frasier Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Evolution (Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, NS) where she co-manages the right whale DNA Databank. She received a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Anthropology from Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario. She then went on to establish an environmental contracting company providing expertise in land use, environmental impact assessment, and management of waste products for the oil and gas industry in Alberta and Saskatchewan. In 2008, she completed her PhD in the Environment and Life Sciences Graduate Program at Trent University where she focused on the analysis of ancient DNA of the North Atlantic right and bowhead whales. She uses the assessment of ancient DNA of a variety of marine mammals in order to better understand species history and recovery. She has also completed several projects creating research materials and field guides to assist in Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) studies on marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic. 

With a background in biology, Nick works as a wildlife cameraman specializing in aerial, underwater, and boat-based ocean filming. He owns and operate the industry's top cameras, drones, gimbals and underwater equipment and has traveled extensively throughout the world to photograph and film our planets most iconic wildlife. 

Nick is a member of the International League of Conservation Photographers, a group of leading wildlife, nature and culture photographers and videographers who have each demonstrated a deep commitment to conservation efforts around the globe. He was a 2020 National Geographic Explorer and was inducted as a member of the Royal Canadian Geographic society in 2021. His ultimate goal, whether through photography or film, is to bring unique stories of the natural world to audiences worldwide while promoting the conservation of the species and ecosystems upon which we all rely.

Angelia received a Bachelor of Science Co-op in Marine Biology and Statistics (Combined Honours) from Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Her honours research project focused on analysing and characterising some of the sounds produced by the endangered right whale in the Bay of Fundy; a first step in assessing the feasibility of a passive acoustic monitoring program. Angelia received her Master of Science in Statistics from the University of Victoria in 2004. In 2010, Angelia completed her Ph.D. in Biological Oceanography from Dalhousie University where her research quantified the risk to North Atlantic right whales from ocean-going vessels and fishing gear. This research was used in the design and justification for conservation initiatives to protect right whale from vessel strikes in Canadian waters. In recognition of the conservation efforts of her research, she was awarded the William T. Hornaday Conservation Award from the American Society of Mammalogists as well as a Canadian Whale Institute Award. Angelia has recently continued her right whale research as a Lindy S. Johnson Fellow where her research focused on evaluating the efficacy of the voluntary Area To Be Avoided by determining the compliance of vessel past the initial year of implementation and the affect of a letter-writing campaign on non-compliant vessels. Angelia was also a Research Associate at the Large Pelagics Research Center, University of Massachusetts Amherst where her research focused on integrating sonar and aerial results in support of fishery-independent surveys of juvenile Atlantic bluefin tuna. Currently, Angelia works as a cetacean biologist for Fisheries and Oceans Canada.