Qualifications: BSc – Biochemistry, Chemistry, Zoology, St Francis Women’s College, Hyderabad

Email: mariam.aa@gmail.com

Profile: Mariam has lived in the Andaman Islands for 10 years; she went here to become a diver and gain a better understanding of the marine environment, so she could work in the field of marine conservation. During this time, she grew fascinated by the history and diversity of the various communities that had settled in the Andamans, and this drew me to the human component of conservation.

She now works with the Andaman Karen Crafts (AKC) in Mayabunder, facilitating the development and growth of the Karen community by bringing to the forefront their culture, customs and language. It is this work with the AKC that makes me want to delve deeper into how settler communities of the Islands live and interact with their environment and how they utilise the available natural resources in comparison to the Islands Indigenous communities.