While at the University of Vermont, Mary focused on Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Agroecology, studying the intersection of cultural and environmental conservation. During her studies, she spent time in Botswana, where she conducted research in the Okavango Delta and worked with local communities on human-wildlife conflict. After school, she traveled the world to understand the diverse ways in which culture impacts the land and assisted in wildlife conservation efforts. She went on to serve as Project Coordinator for an organization that connected Indigenous Elders around the world, co-creating solutions for global issues. She helped facilitate a conference of the elders in Hawai’i, centered on Native perspectives related to climate change. Mary has spent the past four years as an international educator and has led student programs in Japan, Iceland, Italy, Greece, Ghana, Australia, New Zealand, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Denmark. The highlight of all of Mary’s journeys was last year, when she spent three months in the Cook Islands as a marine conservation intern with an Indigenous-led NGO. In 2026, Mary was selected to be part of the Coalition Wild Excelerator cohort and is currently working on her project to bridge art and bird conservation in Guatemala. Mary looks forward to attending Yale University this fall to obtain a master’s degree in Environmental Science with a focus on environmental justice.