Circles: Fiscal Sponsorship, Learning & Operations

Mariam (she/her) is a former nomad landed in the Hudson Valley, living on Munsee Lenape land in Newburgh with her husband and two cats. A cisgendered, middle class woman, Mariam is Omani and English, and has had the privilege to live in Oman, Malaysia, England, Vietnam, and the United States. Her mixed identity and early experiences of travel and home(s) have shaped her commitment to social justice and equity.

Belonging and inclusion are central to what drives Mariam’s work, starting with her academic grounding in global health with a focus on women and migrants’ access to healthcare. She has spent the last decade advocating for the rights of migrant workers in the Arab Gulf, both as a researcher and a grantmaker. She comes to Just Transition from this labor lens and from a long-standing love for the natural world. She started to write a book about endangered animals at eight years old, which consisted of copying and pasting facts about big cats from an encyclopedia CD-ROM. She has since learned about plagiarism, but still harbors the ambition of writing a book!

Mariam’s role as Operations & Fiscal Sponsorship Manager at GWI enables her to combine her enthusiasm for process and organization with a philosophy of care and connection to the people and projects she serves. She is excited to deepen her relationships within the Mahicantuck Valley and welcomes recommendations for hikes, swimming holes, music venues, bookshops, and food!