Maricelma Fialho, an Indigenous Terena woman from Bananal Village in Brazil’s Pantanal biome, is a biomedical scientist and PhD student in Infectious and Parasitic Diseases at the Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul. Her research focuses on Indigenous health and the impacts of environmental change on disease. In 2019, she became the first Indigenous woman in Brazil to serve as a One Young World Ambassador. A member of the Indigenous Youth Leadership Coalition (IYLC) Latin America, she advocates for Indigenous rights, youth leadership, and climate justice, bridging science, traditional knowledge, and activism to amplify Indigenous voices globally.
