Board of Directors

Janie Wray, Founder, CEO and lead researcher for BC Whales, has studied the acoustic traditions and culture of whale behaviour since 2001. She is the co-founder of the North Coast Cetacean Society and Cetacea Lab. In 2016 she founded BC Whales and the Fin Island Research Station. She is devoted to the protection of whales and their precious habitat needs along the coast of British Columbia.

Eric first began working with BCWhales and the Gitga’at First Nation as a volunteer intern in 2010. He continued with a doctoral thesis project focused on whale foraging ecology, which he conducted as a graduate student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. As a post-doctoral fellow at University of Victoria, he worked with BC Whales in their launch of a new research station Fin Island. He now serves as the Science Co-director for BC Whales and is focused on their visual and aerial survey programs. He teaches at Sewanee: The University of the South, where he works with undergraduate students on data analysis and trains them in field science. He also collaborates regularly with the US NOAA Cetacean Research Program and the Foundation for Marine Ecology & Telemetry Research.

Jenn Dickie has worked as a photographer, wilderness guide and safety & sustainability manager in the adventure tourism industry in BC for 25 years. Jenn has been involved with NCCS since she first brought guests ashore to Cetatcea Lab in 2002 to learn about the work they were doing in the area. In the years since she has been a research assistant, Board Member, and has recently taken on the role of Communications Director.

25 years ago Hayley moved to Canada with a teaching background specializing in Outdoor and Environmental Education. Her first tour of duty was as a research assistant at Orca Lab on Hanson Island in BC, studying Northern Resident Orca. This experience steered Hayley to take on full time work as a wilderness guide and educator where she led people from all over the world into the rich and diverse marine mammal, bear and bird habitat of the BC coast. This work involved operating various vessels, dealing with safety protocols and risk management. With Hayley’s profound interest and care for the diverse wildlife and natural environment of this region, she was thrilled to join the NCCS board of directors in 2010.

Marven is a councillor in the community of Hartley Bay in the Great Bear Rainforest where he lives and owns and has operated his tourism business, Gitga’at Spirit Tours for over 15 years. He is an advocate for the environment, animals, and their habitats, Marven is an expert on Gitga’at territory. In addition to his work in tourism and environmental monitoring and protection, Marven also has tremendous knowledge and skill in the forestry sector.