Riley Elliott MC/Entertainer Profile

Local Kiwi Shark Expert to Global TV Sensation

Riley Elliot is a PhD marine biologist, an author, public speaker, and an executive producer and presenter for Shark Week on one of the biggest networks in the world; Discovery Channel. Riley has also worked with National Geographic, BBC’s Blue Planet and TED TALK New Zealand, sharing his expertise across screen, stage, social media and in the water. From banning shark finning in 2014 to helping change a global perspective on Sharks, his passion exudes from his storytelling. Riley is a local kiwi bloke turned international scientist, business owner, soon to be dad, and TV personality who made a world changing career out of his love for nature.

Mission

Riley is a nature kid who never grew out of it. Committed to the ocean as an ecosystem, Riley forged down the path of marine biology with no money and no financial support, only in search of understanding and change. However, not being funded by a corporate entity meant he was a free agent to speak the truth. Now, in the height of success, running a show for Discovery Channel that 500 million people watch every year, Riley can hold up a megaphone to his passion with his audience knowing he will deliver truth and adventure.

Riley’s ‘science for people’ approach took him to Western Australia with Hawaii's Ocean Ramsey to help end the WA shark cull. To make their mark, Riley and Ocean literally jumped in and resuscitated a 3m Tiger shark. Once the word got out that a man and woman were resuscitating a shark IN THE SEA, they had the opportunity to convey objective science through the media that in the end helped ban the WA Shark Cull.

Having made a lasting impact on the environment, Riley emphasises that we can’t keep neglecting our disconnection with nature because it is literally flooding our homes, wiping out our crops, and building population anxiety. Riley wants to impart hope and improvement foundations to help us work with nature and not against it for the future generations.

Keynote

Riley parallels his work in bringing about global change with inspiring people to take on their own hurdles, sharing his recipe for success: passion and persistence. Riley was just your average kiwi bloke, but in order to achieve his childhood dream around nature, he knew he had to work hard. He gained the intelligence to understand Science, the confidence to speak in public, and was brave enough to swim with Sharks. If Riley can work with the scariest creature on earth and make people love them too, you can do anything.

Following decades of exhilarating adventures Riley Elliott has had experiences that few can relate to. From resuscitating a Shark to almost being murdered in Mexico by a drug cartel, Riley combines his extraordinary life with his scientific knowledge, offering up a myriad of exceptional speaking points.