Maria is the Executive Director of Nobel Women’s Initiative, where she works alongside Nobel Peace Prize laureates to advance nonviolent solutions, defend justice, and champion equality, amplifying the leadership of women driving peace efforts around the world.
She has co-led high-impact feminist delegations to conflict zones including Palestine and Ukraine, bearing witness, elevating women’s voices, and strengthening global solidarity. Her work spans disarmament, women's leadership in peace processes, and high-level advocacy, grounded in a background in international law and grassroots organizing.
Before joining NWI, Maria spent 12 years with the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF). In 2006, she founded Grá (Irish for “love”), a youth-led initiative connecting young people in Ireland with communities in rural Kenya.
Maria is a published author and frequent contributor to media and podcasts, including a chapter in The Oxford Handbook of Women, Peace, and Security. She serves on several boards, including Ireland’s National Action Plan Oversight Group on Women, Peace and Security, and the Advisory Board of the Centre for Human Rights at University College Dublin.
She describes herself as a learner, an advocate, and a passionate changemaker.
Originally from Ireland, Maria lives near Geneva with her husband Geoff and their three children.