Explorers
Fellows
Flag Carriers
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
Eugenie Clark
Years: 1922 – 2015 Hometown: New York, N.Y. Education: Ph.D. in Zoology Occupation: Ichthyologist Expeditions: Over 50 expeditions to the Red Sea, Australia, Japan, Papa New Guinea, Solomon Islands,…
Maureen Clemmons
Dr. Maureen Clemmons theorized the ancient Egyptians, being sailors, utilized the wind not only for sailing, but also for construction. With her field-tested theory…
Dalia Amor Conde
Dalia Amor Conde is a conservation ecologist and associate professor at Southern Denmark University and is also the Director of Science at Species360. She…
Katie Conlon
Environmental advocate, explorer, researcher, humanitarian, storyteller, director, poet, and peacebuilder, Katie Conlon, Ph.D., is carrying Flag #32 on her expedition, “The Third Pole: Because It…
Grace Cordsen
Grace Cordsen, a polar activist and proficient climate communicator carried WINGS Flag #33 while voyaging from Svalbard to the North Pole as a researcher studying…
Anna Cummins
Anna Cummins has over 20 years of experience in environmental non-profit work including marine conservation, coastal watershed management, community relations and sustainability education. Her work…
Aparajita Datta
Conservation Expert/Wildlife Biologist & Ecologist Aparajita Datta engaged in long-term protection of threatened wildlife with local communities in northeast India. She has discovered two…
Cindy Lee Van Dover
Dr. Cindy Lee Van Dover is a deep-sea biologist with an interest in ocean exploration and the ecology of chemosynthetic ecosystems. She began…
Susan Dudley
Susan Dudley, Ph.D. is a plant evolutionary ecologist at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada, whose early work in plant kin recognition sparked both…
Cindy Lee Van Dover
Dr. Cindy Lee Van Dover is a deep-sea biologist with an interest in ocean exploration and the ecology of chemosynthetic ecosystems. She began…
Susan Dudley
Susan Dudley, Ph.D. is a plant evolutionary ecologist at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada, whose early work in plant kin recognition sparked both…
Sylvia Earle
Dr. Sylvia Earle is a legendary marine biologist, oceanographer, explorer, author and lecturer with experience as a field research scientist, government official, and director for…
Gretel Ehrlich
An author of 13 books, poet, documentary filmmaker, former sheepherder and ranch hand, Gretel Ehrlich has truly done it all. She was born in Santa…
Juliana Machado Ferreira
Dr. Juliana Machado Ferreira founded and serves as Executive Director of FREELAND Brasil, whose mission is to conserve biodiversity by ending wildlife trafficking. She designs…
Angela Fisher
Angela Fisher is from Adelaide, Australia, and holds a degree in social sciences. Together with Carol Beckwith, she documents traditional ceremonies of African…
Jill Fredston
Born: 1958 Hometown: Anchorage, AK Education: M.A. in Polar Studies/Glaciology Occupation: Avalanche specialist, author, professional speaker Expeditions: 25,000+ miles of rowing in the far north and sailing around…
Sveva Gallmann
Born: 1980 Hometown: Nairobi, Kenya Education: M.S. Medical Anthropology Occupation: Anthropologist, oral historian, educator, and project coordinator Expeditions: With camels through East Africa Favorite Places: Anywhere with open space in…
Grace Gobbo
Grace Gobbo is an ethnobotanist in Tanzania who studies plants used by traditional healers. Her discoveries include finding new plant species, some of…
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…
Krushnaa Patil
Krushnaa Patil is an avid explorer and climber, beginning in 2007 by attending mountaineering courses with the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering in Uttarkashi, Uttrakhand, India….
Dr. Ulyana Horodyskyj Peña
Glaciologist, geologist, and mountaineer Dr. Ulyana Horodyskyj Peña is the head of communications for the University of Colorado Boulder’s Climate Adaptation Science Center. Her research…
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…
Rahayu Oktaviani
Primate conservationist Rahayu Oktaviani (Flag #23) carried the WINGS Flag to Gunung Halimun Salak National Park in Indonesia, where she leads a longterm field project…
Gaelin Rosenwaks
Gaelin Rosenwaks is a marine scientist, explorer, photographer, filmmaker and author. She began her career at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution conducting research in Antarctica…
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…
Silvia Schrötter
Tropical Ecologist Silvia Schrötter focuses on how to effectively incorporate the human dimension, including livelihood development, into nature conservation and climate change adaptation. The goal…
