Unelker is an environmental scientist passionate about conservation that works for both people and the planet. Managing projects at a global development organisation and leading a youth-led environmental organisation in Kenya, she turns community-rooted ideas into real-world impact.

Name: Unelker Maoga

Degree course: MSc Environment and Development

Year of graduation: 2021

At the moment

What is your current role, and how did you get there?

I’m an environmental scientist working at the intersection of clean energy, climate resilience, and agriculture. At a global non-governmental organisation (NGO) – Practical Action – I support development programmes that help communities in developing countries confront global challenges that shape their lives – from poverty, volatile climates to fragile markets.

On a day-to-day basis, I help knit together climate-smart agriculture and decentralised renewables so smallholders can grow more, waste less, and earn better. My days span shaping donor-funded development programs across Africa, Asia, and Latin America, sharpening Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) frameworks, and turning field evidence into learning and guidance teams can actually use.

What inspired your interest in this field?

I always knew I wanted to work in conservation practice. After graduating as a scientist from the University of Nairobi in Kenya, I spent time in marine and wildlife conservation. I quickly realised that without understanding and engaging meaningfully with people, the planet will not change. This insight pulled me toward conservation with communities, not just for them, and that thinking birthed a youth-led non-profit called Konservation that offers a different and unapologetically African perspective on conservation.

The route wasn’t a straight line. I learnt my craft by founding Konservation – building community-based solar projects and women’s enterprises, writing proposals at midnight, running field activities at dawn, and measuring impact in between. Those early years proved that small grants and big trusts can unlock locally-led development. National Geographic, the Global Greengrants Fund, Purpose Earth, and other partners helped back projects that communities could sustain on their own.

Aware of my social-science limitations, I chose the MSc in Environment and Development to understand the histories, social dynamics, and politics shaping the global conservation agenda. The programme turned out to be my best academic decision yet – I spent time digging into power constructs in conservation, how social studies frame conservation practice, and the need to unlock solutions that last because people own them.

Today, I am a systems thinker obsessed with the people and planet sweet spot, working for a global NGO that has given me the canvas to scale what works, without losing the nuance that makes it work.

Career journey

What were some key milestones in your career journey?

• 2016 – Science first: My brief stint as a scientist in marine and wildlife conservation – I took my first steps into field-based conservation assessing coral reefs along Kenya’s coastline and sleeping in tents in wildlife conservancies.
• 2018 – Building from the ground up: I launched Konservation, determined to turn modest grants into big wins. We have established a solar retail outlet, a women’s enterprise, and are working with farmers to scale regenerative agriculture – projects that communities could sustain.
• 2020 – Studying in Edinburgh: Dove back into academia and spent time unpacking how we know what we know – epistemology, decolonial critique, political ecology – and burning through highlighters on those never-ending reading lists asking the forgotten question: Can the Subaltern Speak? I found people in conservation.
• 2022 – From academia to action: I joined an international NGO where I coordinate multi-country development projects and consult across Africa on energy access, climate resilience, and gender-transformative approaches – translating community insight into locally-led strategies and decisions that move the needle.
• Recognition and networks: Fellowships and awards – WWF Africa Youth Award (2019), National Geographic Explorer (2020), Open Africa Power Fellow (2025) among others. These sparked collaborations and kept my work grounded in practicality and impact.

How did your time at the University shape your professional path?

The University of Edinburgh was the pivot from “science about nature” to “practice with people.” The MSc in Environment and Development gave me a language for what I had felt in the field – political ecology to trace power and incentives, development economics to weigh trade-offs, and the need for balance when navigating ambition and reality. It also taught me to interrogate the conservation narrative itself: who decides, who benefits, and what changes when communities lead.

Edinburgh gave me the language to explain the root problems we see in global conservation practice, and the tools to help fix them.

The Mastercard Foundation Scholar Program was also central to my time in Edinburgh – creating a student community that modelled leadership within our lived realities.

Can you share a standout achievement or moment you’re proud of?

Receiving the 2019 WWF Africa Youth Award for environment and sustainable development. It came out of nowhere. I had no idea someone somewhere had noticed the work we were doing at Konservation. We were heads down, but someone saw and gave us a spotlight – and it meant the world.

Industry insights

What are the biggest challenges and opportunities in your field right now?

The development sector is shifting fast, there are tighter budgets, and climate finance doesn’t always seem to reach the last mile. That’s the challenge. The opportunity? There has been momentum on decolonising development – moving resources, decisions, and data power closer to communities in developing countries.

What trends or innovations are shaping the future of your industry?

Technology has put education and information within arm’s reach. That’s breaking down barriers and creating room for innovation that doesn’t need to be ‘from scratch’. There are also a lot more rewards for self-starters and people who dare to do (not dream).

Alumni wisdom

What do you wish you had known at the start of your career?

Moving continents and life as an international student was a steep learning curve. What I wish I knew? You are not an imposter. Take space. Own your path. Things always work out in the end.

What advice would you give to students or alumni looking to enter your field?

Time flies! Use your time in university to sit back, learn, and ask the odd questions. Take full advantage of your School at the University of Edinburgh – Dr Sam Staddon was a walking library and an inspiration. Lean into people – make time for curious conversations, the people you meet can change your perspective and your path.

Are there any books, podcasts, or resources that have influenced you?

Books: The Big Conservation Lie by Mbaria & Ogada, Dead Aid by Dambisa Moyo, The Wretched of the Earth by Frantz Fanon and the Bible.

Listening to Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has given me agency and the ‘permission to be’.

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