Nan Hauser grew up in Pennsylvania and Bermuda, surrounded by animals and inspired by her nature-loving grandmother. With a background in nursing and midwifery, Nan applies science and compassion from human healthcare to whale research, combining accurate methodology, emergency care, and a passion for helping both people and animals.
A whale researcher in the Cook Islands and Bermuda, Nan investigates whale songs, migration, and genetics. Her curiosity fuels scientific publications and conservation efforts, aiming to be a dedicated voice for whales.
Nan is President and Director of the Centre for Cetacean Research & Conservation and Director and Principal Investigator of Cook Islands Whale Research, based in Rarotonga, Cook Islands. She researches whale and dolphin identity, population abundance, acoustics, genetics, behaviour, migration, and navigation, using satellite tagging to track long-distance movements.
As an Adjunct Professor at Auckland University of Technology, she has taught internationally for numerous conservation and research organisations.
A registered nurse, Nan also practices and teaches medicine locally and educates schools about whale conservation and ocean protection. Nan serves on the Executive Committee of the South Pacific Whale Research Consortium and was instrumental in creating the Cook Islands’ 2 million km² whale sanctuary and establishing a Whale Research & Education Centre.
For over three decades, Hauser has led humpback whale field research focused on population ecology, migration, and conservation management. She founded the Cook Islands Whale Research Project in 1998, producing the first baseline data on whale abundance, site fidelity, and reproduction.
Her research directly informed sanctuary creation and the development of Marae Moana, a vast marine park declared in 2017. Combining photo-identification, satellite telemetry, and acoustics, her work revealed complex migratory patterns linking Oceania and Antarctica, supported new Important Marine Mammal Areas, and gained global recognition through major media features and awards.
Link
www.whaleresearch.org
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Kintsugi Heroes is a not-for-profit Australian podcast network sharing real stories of resilience, disability, and transformation.
Named after the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold — the philosophy that what’s been broken can become more beautiful for the mending — every episode honours the cracks, the rebuild, and the human underneath.
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