Max(ine) Westhead is the Director of the Marine Affairs Program at Dalhousie University. She holds a B.Sc in Marine Biology from the University of Guelph (1996) and a Master of Science in Marine Biology from Acadia University (2005). Her Master’s thesis focused on Bay of Fundy mudflat ecology. 

Max initially joined the Marine Affairs Program at Dalhousie in 2014 as an instructor for the graduate level Marine Protected Areas course. Now, as Director of the Marine Affairs Program since 2023, her focus is on delivering memorable student experiences and fostering broad relationships with the marine management community in Halifax and abroad while training the next generation of marine managers.   

Prior to Dalhousie, Max worked for the Marine Planning and Conservation Program with Fisheries and Oceans Canada for 26 years, mostly at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography. She has held various positions within the Department over the years, but primarily as Section Head of the Maritimes Region Marine Protected Areas (MPA) Program. Over the years she has led several MPA design and designation processes, led consultation and engagement efforts, and she and her team have proudly contributed to Canada’s marine conservation targets. In 2018 Max shifted her focus to (less controversial) work with DFO’s Marine Spatial Planning Program and led both national and regional Marine Spatial Planning teams for one and four years respectively. 

In her spare time Max is a HYROX and Level II CrossFit coach at Blended Athletics, and a competitive Olympic weightlifter.