Maureen grew up along with her siblings on a small farm in Nyahururu, Kenya. Based on her academic success, she was admitted to the Alliance Girls’ High School, a boarding school 20 km outside of Nairobi. She later received the Kenyan Scholar Award to attend St Lawrence University in New York, where she earned a degree in Economics with a minor in Mathematics. Her own life experiences in the US and Kenya inspired her to be actively involved in the African Students’ Union, where she worked on multiple projects, including helping to market Ajiri Tea, a non-profit organization in Kenya managed by women. She was drawn to UBC because of the academic opportunities related to her interests in food and resource economic policy, as well as the student organizations and vibrant campus community. Her long-term career goals include working for organizations that specialize in policy development and analysis to facilitate economic development in Sub-Saharan Africa. She is pursuing a Masters in Food and Resource Economics in the Faculty of Land and Food Systems at UBC.