About Maya

Maya is a graphic designer, writer, and creative strategist. Her specialties are branding, storytelling, and communication design.

Maya’s clients have included The Nature Conservancy, Landor & Fitch, the Australian National University, the California Academy of Sciences, and Seth Godin Productions, where she helped to launch and lead The Marketing Seminar. She frequently writes for major design publications, and has been published in Adobe Create, Communication Arts, CreativePro, InDesign Magazine, HOW, and PRINT Magazine, among others.

EDUCATION
Maya holds a Bachelor of Arts with honors in English and Environmental Studies from the University of Chicago. She also holds a Master of Science in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology from Cornell University. She learned graphic design through self-directed study.

PATH TO DESIGN
When Maya discovered that she wanted to become a designer, she was teaching a writing course at Cornell University as a science PhD student. While preparing for a unit on voice and audience, she looked at children’s books. Seeing how graphics and words could integrate inspired her so much that she decided to pursue design and writing instead of continuing with her PhD program. That year, she received Cornell’s Excellence in Teaching Award—but she feels that her class taught her more than she could have ever dreamed of.

PERSPECTIVE
Keep room for the unimagined.