Maya was born and raised in Sitka and completed her MA in Anthropology and Environmental Policy at the University of Maine where she studied Self-Determined and Sustainable Tourism in South Greenland; decolonizing equitable and ethical research partnerships and methodologies in the Arctic; Co-Production of Knowledge frameworks; Science of Team Science (SciTS); Arctic Indigenous ocean Stewardship and Management models; and fisheries management and research. She has additional backgrounds in Indigenous Data Sovereignty and data agreements, and is a co-lead of the Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC) Data Team. Since moving back to Alaska in 2023, she has worked for Tribes and non-profits on a variety of projects and issues within community, national, and international spaces.