From an early age, Emi developed a passion for nature thanks to her father who ensured every family trip involved camping, hiking, and outdoor exploration. Growing up in Tokyo, a relatively clean city, it came as a shock to 9-year old Emi when her and her family moved to Istanbul, where she witnessed industrialization and air pollution for the first time. Despite being unaware of carbon emissions or climate change then, Emi knew that these issues were real and decided that she wanted to dedicate her life to environmental conservation.

Emi kickstarted her conservation career in 2013 when she accepted a summer internship in natural resource management on the island of Kauai, Hawaii. After completing her undergraduate degree in Environmental Science from McGill University, she returned to the tropical island to work another two years in native forest restoration and watershed management. Since then, her continuing passion for conservation and love for traveling has taken her to work with primates in Thailand, elephant eco-tourism in Nepal, orangutan conservation in Indonesia, and non-profit management in Los Angeles where she is currently based.

With these diverse experiences under her belt, she is now determined to engage the global public with conservation through effective storytelling and communications. She looks forward to reaching towards this goal as a Mongabay Wildtech Intern!