Be love.

Melannie holds experience as an author, dive instructor, published marine scientist, & yoga teacher. She is passionate about inspiring connections with each other, within ourselves, and with our planet. As a triple negative breast cancer survivor diagnosed at age 35, she carries the BRCA1 gene mutation. 

Credentials

Education:

  • Master of Science in Marine Science, Hawaii Pacific University, 2013

  • Bachelor of Science in Zoology, Michigan State University, 2007

Yoga:

Diving Qualifications:

  • Freedive Instructor (trained by Nick Fazah, East Coast Divers), 2019

  • Scuba Instructor (trained by Andy Silverman, Columbus Scuba & Mark Scott, SSI ), 2018

  • Dive Instructor for PADI, SSI, SDI & PFI

More Deets

  • The timeless art of writing has been an integral part of everything Melannie does; like the water that flows through all she is fortunate to create. She shares her experiences through the potent energy of print with the intention of inspiring connection through feeling deeply within the golden thread of community.

    As a marine scientist for over a decade, she has published over 6 scientific works. She has also written for online blogs with multiple platforms (Thought Catalog & DiveNewswire), and recently released her first self published book of musings reflecting on her journey through cancer, a dive through cancer.

  • Melannie has been fortunate to have traveled the globe & experience our underwater world from both scientific & recreational standpoints. 

    From studying toxicology in graduate school, she has worked with various marine species in Charleston, SC and the Hawaiian Islands (sea turtles, dolphins & whales, seabirds, & corals). After working in remote areas of Indonesia studying coral reefs as well as marine mammals, she began her journey as a diving instructor.  Melannie felt she could make a bigger impact on preserving our marine ecosystem by improving connections between people & the environment through dive instruction. 

    With over 20 years dive experience, she is both a Scuba diving and Freediving instructor with numerous specialties teaching for multiple institutions. 

    She is currently teaching Freediving with Performance Freediving International (PFI) to 20 m depth and is an OWSI with Scuba Diving International (SDI) teaching up through divemaster level.

  • To further expand her freedive class offerings, Melannie gained her 200 hour RYT yoga teacher certificate with breath-work as her focus from Satsang Yoga Charleston.

    She completed a 10-day Vipassana course, a 3-day Vipassana course, and served a 10-day Vipassana Course.

    She teaches yoga and meditation in conjunction with her Freedive classes.

  • Click on the titles below to read blogs about diving, life, & love written by Melannie Bachman

    To read published scientific articles, click here

    Check out Melannie's book HERE

    Dive NewsWire:

    Thought Catalog:

  • ▪ Best Rated Dive Professional of the Month. Internationally Recognized, Diver Magazine. (2019)

    ▪ Gold 500 Instructor. Scuba Schools International (SSI) Dive Instructor Award. (2020)

    ▪ 50 Students Award. Certified over 50 students through SSI. (2020)

    ▪ Best Student Paper Award, 3rd Place. (2015). Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry’s (SETAC) journal, Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Publication above (Bachman et al., 2015)

    ▪ Oral Presentation Award, 3rd Place. (2012). Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) North America Meeting, Long Beach, CA.

    ▪ Best Oral Presentation. (2012). Hawai‘i Pacific University Faculty Scholarship Day, Kaneohe, HI.