Organizations
Making the Connection
Dedicated to exploration, conservation, and empowering the next generation of ocean stewards to engage in the critical issues facing our oceans today, Mehgan is regularly active in mentoring and project collaborations with a variety of non-profit organizations. Including her volunteer work and as a member of the Women Divers Hall of Fame, Conservation Advisor on Ocean First Institute‘s Advisory Board, and Project Educator and Spokesperson for Lionfish University’s Antigua Project. Mehgan is also a Fellow in the prestigious Explorers Club, a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of scientific research, conservation, and preserving the instinct to explore.
The Women Divers Hall of Fame in an international non-profit organization dedicated to honoring and raising awareness of the contributions of outstanding women divers who are pioneers, leaders, innovators and world record holders throughout the international diving community.
At the age of 22, Mehgan was inducted into the Women Divers Hall of Fame (WDHOF) as part of the inaugural roster in 2000. She remains WDHOF’s youngest-ever inductee. Now, as a long-time member, Mehgan actively volunteers as a mentor within the mentoring program and with the organization’s annual scholarship fundraising efforts.
Each year, WDHOF awards more than 80k in scholarships and training grants that provide financial and educational support to individuals of all ages involved in dive related studies and careers.
In 2020 Mehgan received the honor of becoming a Fellow in The Explorers Club, joining the elite ranks of the distinguished explorers, conservationists, and scientists from around the world.
Founded in New York City in 1904, this non-profit organization is an international multidisciplinary professional society dedicated to the support and advancement of scientific research, conservation, and preserving the instinct to explore.
Lionfish University (LFU) is non-profit organization dedicated to preserving our oceans’ reefs and native fish populations, which are threatened in the western Atlantic, the Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico by the invasive lionfish. This non-profit serves to share information and resources relating to the lionfish infestation with the goal to raise awareness and coordinate conservation efforts to help mitigate the devastating effects of this invasive species.
Mehgan is an ambassador for LFU as well as Project Educator and Spokesperson for Lionfish University’s ongoing Antigua Project The goal of this effort is to prioritize actions for a comprehensive, community-based lionfish management program for the islands of Antigua and Barbuda in order to protect native reef communities and explore economic opportunities for these islands.
Mehgan serves as Conservation Advisor on the Ocean First Institute Advisory Board. Ocean First Institute (OFI) is a non-profit organization based in Boulder, Colorado that focuses on ocean conservation through experiential research and education. To date, OFI’s marine conservation youth programs has reached over 140,000 students in 35 countries around the world.