TEAM 

Maisie, founder of Studio Verde, is a visual artist and conservationist with a profound commitment to bridging the realms of art and environmental advocacy. Raised in the Okavango Delta in Botswana on a lion research camp, Maisie's early engagement in wildlife research laid the foundation for her deep-rooted passion for conservation. Since 2015, Maisie has been actively involved in the Peruvian Amazon, contributing to projects on Biological Stations and collaborating with researchers on critical issues such as the impact of mercury from gold mining. Her dedication extends to her role as the lead consultant for the Artist for the Amazon program at Amazon Aid and her collaboration with ACEER (Amazon Center for Environmental Education and Research) as a conservation fellow and Art Residency Director. Maisie also served as the botanical illustrator for Camino Verde, contributing to a book on medicinal plants of the Amazon, Madre de Dios region. Additionally, she played a collaborative role in research trips with the Tropical Conservation Fund, particularly involved in night monkey research. Maisie's commitment to environmental conservation took a global dimension with the establishment of Studio Verde in 2021. Through Studio Verde, Maisie has orchestrated art and ecology programs in the Umbrian wilderness and curated the Beyond Conservation Artist in Residence program in the Peruvian Amazon and C0-Existence in the Maasai Mara, Kenya. Her vision is to create a global nexus for multidisciplinary creatives and change-makers, fostering innovative approaches to environmental challenges. As the co-curator and member of the selection committee, of "MINE: What is Ours in the Wake of Extraction," an exhibition held at Delaware University, Maisie contributes to a factual understanding of ecological challenges within the context of the exhibition. As the founder of Studio Verde, Maisie continues to develop initiatives that weave art, science, and conservation, reflecting her commitment to a sustainable and harmonious coexistence with the planet.

Maxime is an artist and nature facilitator. She has a First Class BA in History of Art from the Courtauld Institute and worked in the contemporary art market in London before turning to nature. Having grown up in Botswana on the edge of the Okavango delta and the Kalahari desert, she now lives on a permaculture community in the UK. She is led by transformative potential and the meeting point between nature and creativity.

Ayesha Prasad is a conservation scientist and policy advisor with over 25 years of invaluable experience across sectors – scientific research, grassroots conservation, industry consulting, and public service. As a scientist, she specialised in woodland savannah and tropical dry forest ecology, with doctoral and postdoctoral studies on invasion by Lantana camara, its ecological impacts and implications for large carnivore habitats and prey, and restoration of important conservation landscapes degraded by this invasion. As an ecological consultant, Ayesha reported on the impacts of large-scale ‘development’, such as mining, wind energy, and transportation infrastructure, on endangered species and their habitats in different Canadian ecosystems. She has also worked on ecotourism and its ecological impacts in protected areas as well as human-wildlife interactions in areas adjoining national parks in India. Currently Ayesha works for the government of Ontario, Canada, as a science and policy advisor in the fields of endangered species conservation, natural resource management, and renewable energy. Her work has been greatly informed by indigenous ecological knowledge and has sought to centre indigenous rights and wellbeing within conservation research and action. As a result of her diverse work experience across ecological landscapes, from southern Indian savannahs and forests to Canada’s Rocky Mountains and wetlands to the savannahs of the Maasai Mara, her expertise includes community ecology, wildlife biology, ecological restoration, human-wildlife interactions, environmental impact assessment, policy development, natural resource management, and ecotourism. Her heart lies in frontline conservation research and practice, community empowerment, and capacity building, particularly in areas where indigenous peoples bear the social, cultural, and economic brunt of natural resource exploitation and environmental degradation in their territories and are leading the fight to preserve their lands and traditional livelihoods.