Mel is the Chief Operating Officer for the Cape Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance and for the last five years has been coordinating fishing industry and NGO efforts to develop New England’s Audit Model EM Program for groundfish and to ensure that EM data is accessible and utilized for stock assessments and fisheries science. She can often be found in the space where the best ideas of the small-boat fleet are brought forward to scientists, tried and tested, and worked into regulations to help fish and fishermen.

Mel grew up in Minnesota, but earned her sea legs studying marine biology on the West Coast, where she received her BA in Marine Biology from Occidental College. She interned with the Fishermen’s Alliance while obtaining her Masters in Coastal Environmental Management from Duke University.

Christi is the Electronic Monitoring Project Manager at A.I.S., Inc. Her expertise is built on over seven years of experience in video review from the West Coast and Alaska, at the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission, as well as at sea experience observing commercial fishing and marine construction off the eastern seaboard. As a former field biologist her experience adds depth to her work at many levels. A.I.S., Inc partners with universities, government agencies, and the private sector to improve electronic monitoring accessibility and long term feasibility worldwide.

CCE is one of the only groups on Long Island that works directly with local commercial fisherman. We help to ensure this unique and historical way of life is preserved. We work with local, state and federal managers to ensure local fishing is sustainable. We aid in the design and testing of conservation fishing gear that reduces by-catch of non-target species.

Max strives to identify customer and market needs across Vericatch’s product portfolio and articulate the features, continual support and improvements of those products to meet business objectives while ensuring implementation of the three pillars of sustainability – people, profit and planet.
Prior to joining Vericatch, Max gained experience as a research consultant with a focus on
building resilience within coastal communities. Central to his work was the development of
place-based solutions that honoured community spirit while providing economic benefit.
Max grew up on the West Coast of Canada which inspired him to study Coastal Ecology and eventually complete an M.Sc. in Environmental Science.

The Oyster Recovery Partnership (ORP) is a non-profit focused on the Chesapeake Bay. We have partnered with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to help manage the state’s electronic reporting program as well as dockside and onboard monitoring of harvesters who report electronically. There are four fisheries that have the option to report electronically in Maryland’s portion of the bay: commercial blue crab, finfish, shellfish, and the for-hire fleet.

Kaycee is a coastal resource scientist who leads the sustainable fisheries team at the Oyster Recovery Partnership (ORP). She works in partnership with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and stakeholders in the fishing industry to further develop and maintain the FACTS (Fishing Activity & Catch Tracking System) electronic reporting and monitoring tool for Maryland’s commercial blue crab, finfish, shellfish, and for-hire fleets. In addition, Kaycee manages a dockside and onboard monitoring program to verify the electronic harvest reports.