Explorers
Fellows
Flag Carriers
Dr. Grace C. Young
Dr. Grace C. Young is a Research Engineer and Lead Scientist at X, Alphabet’s Moonshot Factory (formerly GoogleX), where her team is creating radical new technologies to protect…
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Dr. Haiza Haroon
Materials scientist Haiza Haroon will lead her expedition to South Island, New Zealand, endeavoring to discover the potential use of earthy material, namely clay collected…
Julieta Massaferro
Paleoecologist / paleolimnologist Julieta Massaferro (Flag #33) researches fossil insects from lake sediments to reconstruct past environmental conditions and understand climate and other environmental changes…
Anna Knochel
Marine ecologist Anna Knochel (Flag #34) will be collecting data in the Galapagos that combines acoustic tagging, satellite tagging, and isotope analyses to identify movement…
Norina Vicente
Entomologist and conservation biologist Norina Vicente focuses on the evolutionary history of the eusocial, wingless wasps “ants” of poorly known regions, Afrotropical and Malagasy. For…
Azlin Fazlina Osman
Bioengineer and nanotechnology researcher Azlin Fazlina Osman and her team will explore dolomite reservoirs around the Ashio mountainland in Kuzu district, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan. Dolomite…
Dominique Gonçalves
As a keystone species, elephants help maintain the integrity of entire ecosystems, which in turn deliver climate regulation benefits and resilience to climatic shocks. Ecosystem…
Gina Moseley
Palaeoclimatologist and polar explorer Gina Moseley specializes in improving our understanding of how the Arctic responds to a warmer world. Gina has led two pioneering…
Kiera Rumbough
Kiera Rumbough is a marine biologist and the lead research coordinator on a multi-year sea expedition around the world to film and document stories about…
Cassandra Quave
Writer, professor, podcast host, mother, and ethnobotanist Cassandra Quave, Ph.D., is a two-time WINGS Flag Carrier. Cassandra is an endowed Associate Professor of Dermatology and…
2025 Women of Discovery
Dr. Yara Barros
Dr. Yara Barros is a Brazilian conservation biologist and the Executive Coordinator of Project Jaguars of Iguaçu, a flagship initiative dedicated to the conservation of…
Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson
Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson is a marine biologist, policy expert, writer, and teacher working to help create the best possible climate future. She is co-founder…
Dr. Divya Karnad
Dr. Divya Karnad is an Indian marine conservationist and associate professor at Ashoka University, dedicated to sustainable seafood, fisheries management and marine biodiversity protection. With…
Dr. Nurzhafarina Othman
Dr. Nurzhafarina (Farina) Othman is a conservation scientist and community advocate dedicated to the protection of the endangered Bornean elephant. With a PhD in Bioscience…
Dr. Grace C. Young
Dr. Grace C. Young is a Research Engineer and Lead Scientist at X, Alphabet’s Moonshot Factory (formerly GoogleX), where her team is creating radical new technologies to protect…
All Explorers
Naomi Pierce
Born: 1954 Hometown: Denver, CO Education: Ph.D. in Biology Occupation: Entomologist, evolutionary biologist Expeditions: Australia, Borneo, Southeast Asia, Africa Favorite Place: In the mountains Best Discoveries: The evolution of symbioses between…
Ruthmery Pillco
Ruthmery Pillco is a Peruvian biologist who works on conservation and biodiversity projects in the rainforests of Costa Rica and Peru. In Costa Rica, she…
Ana Pinto
Born: 1959 Hometown: Oviedo, Asturias, Spain Education: Ph.D. in Archaeology Occupation: Archaeologist, anthropologist Expeditions: Spain, South Africa, Tanzania Favorite Place: Outdoors on the green slopes of the Asturias mountains Best Discoveries:…
Milbry Polk
Born: 1954 Hometown: Oxford, England Education: B.A. in Anthropology Occupation: Photographer, writer, founder of WINGS WorldQuest Expeditions: Egypt, India, Tibet, the Arctic, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Alaska, Nepal, Greenland Favorite Places:…
Andrea Polli
Born: 1968 Hometown: Albuquerque, NM Education: M.F.A Occupation: Environmental artist working at the intersection of art, science and technology Expeditions: The Dry Valleys and the South Pole of Antarctica,…
Catherine Powers
Born: 1976 Hometown: Denver, CO Education: Ph.D. in Earth Sciences Occupation: Paleontologist Expeditions: Europe and Western U.S. to analyze the distribution and diversity of bryozoans, a group of marine…
Jane Poynter
Jane Poynter is one of only eight people ever in history to live sealed in an artificial world for two years. Jane’s preparation…
Paula Prist
Dr. Prist is currently a senior scientist at EcoHealth Alliance. She holds a Master´s and Ph.D in ecology from the Department of Ecology of University of São Paulo,…
Cassandra Quave
Writer, professor, podcast host, mother, and ethnobotanist Cassandra Quave, Ph.D., is a two-time WINGS Flag Carrier. Cassandra is an endowed Associate Professor of Dermatology and…
