Program Officer, Moore Foundation
Maria is a program officer with the Andes-Amazon Initiative of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, where she is in charge of the management and implementation of the grants portfolio in the Andean region. Previously, she was a research associate with the Social Ecology Lab where she managed the Summen Redwoods Project and worked on community-engaged learning and research projects with NatureBridge, including initiatives to develop alternative measures and metrics related to environmental behavior and citizen science activities. Her research focuses on community-based natural resource management, land tenure, and perceptions of rights and resources. Maria earned her PhD in Interdisciplinary Ecology, with a concentration in Anthropology and Tropical Conservation and Development, from the University of Florida in 2010. She is a former NSF IGERT, Inter-American Grassroots Development, and American Association of University Women fellow. Maria has conducted research in Ecuador, Brazil, and Mexico, and served as a U.S. Peace Corps volunteer in Paraguay. She also previously worked as a scientist at Earth Innovation Institute (EII) and as a consultant to various environmental nonprofits, including the Nature Conservancy. She holds an M.S. in Interdisciplinary Ecology from the University of Florida and a B.A. in History from the University of North Carolina.