Nilsa learned to skate when she was 3 years old but she started figure skating with the Burnaby Figure Skating Club when she was 10 years old. She started volunteering for the CanSkate program shortly after at the age of 12. When she turned 17 she got trained as a CanSkate coach. Nilsa is passionate about music and the artistic side of figure skating. She has competed in free skate, artistic/interpretive, and showcase competitions. She is currently studying creative writing at the University of British Columbia.