Hailing from campus-set North Vancouver, Mel has spent much of his life dedicated to the exploration, education and conservation of marine wildlife, particularly marine mammals. He grew up with a fond love for the sea otters resident at the Vancouver Aquarium, growing up next to them and learning from the professionals that came before him. Since that moment, as a child he realized that these animals would be the ones he would want to work with for the rest of his life. Since being accepted into the team, he embarked on a mission for the rest of his life, through his actions, words, and mindset - to share that love with as many people as he possibly can, in an effort to conserve and protect the species of animals he loves and adores!

He has since had the opportunity to grow and work alongside all the organizations and wildlife professionals he once looked up to, spending a large majority of his high school career gaining hands-on experience. Starting early at just fifteen years old, he was brought up by Ocean Wise as a youth ambassador contributing to marine research, education, and leadership.

In the early stages of his time with Ocean Wise, he contributed hundreds of volunteer hours towards marine biosurveys, marine chemistry research, and public advocacy. Networking and making friends with like-minded people, he eventually made his way up to being a volunteer at the Vancouver Aquarium, as an educator. As an educator, many hours were dedicated to inspiring, advocating, and educating about animals - particularly his favourite marine mammal - sea otters towards the general public.

He was one of the youngest volunteers to begin, and after building his connections, contributing over a thousand hours of volunteer work, and his passion for the field eventually granted him his childhood dream - to be part of, widely considered, one of the most prestigious teams of heritage interpreters in the world - at the Vancouver Aquarium.

Since achieving his dream, Mel has entertained, inspired, and educated hundreds of thousands of guests, working and interacting with over five-thousand guests every day. His work continues with founding, and being at the helm of the Wildlife Conservation & Ecology Society, an initiative he'd been dreaming of since his days in his first leadership program with Ocean Wise.

Today, he's one of the youngest in the field - and just getting started. He sees the outdoors as an opportunity for people to look a little closer and take the time to learn, appreciate, and understand the incredibly vast ecological complexity that surrounds them. As the president of the Wildlife Conservation & Ecology Society, his vision is to accelerate a university club to a global organization, poised towards pioneering informal interpretive education, science-backed direct action, and inspiring minds of all ages to protect our planet through loving all animals, from the fluffy cute ones, to the strange peculiar ones.