Marina Mulligan

Marina Mulligan is a conservation biologist who has spent her career working with wildlife, habitats and the people connected to them. Her journey has taken her from working with the NPWS in National Parks to ecological advisor on the Breeding Curlew EIP with BirdWatch Ireland and the Heritage Council as part of Ireland’s first cohort of local authority Biodiversity Officers. She has also worked internationally including in British Columbia, collaborating with Indigenous communities to push for stronger policies for wildlife and protected areas.

Marina is fascinated by the space where nature, people and place meet. She enjoys translating what happens in the field scientifically into conversations that connect directly with communities  to make ecology, habitat restoration and complex biodiversity issues accessible without losing the evidence behind it.

A regular host and presenter at the Mayo Dark Sky Festival for several years, Marina’s interest in dark skies grew through meeting the incredible people involved in protecting Mayo’s dark sky areas while working in Wild Nephin National Park. With wildlife and the effects of artificial light on species intersecting with the reasons behind biodiversity loss, this interest is now fully rooted. She loves bringing scientists, artists and audiences together to explore the natural world – and hopes you’ll leave the festival looking at both the landscape and the night sky a little differently.