Faiza Mookerjee
Faiza Mookerjee
Faiza grew up in India's bustling capital city of New Delhi, although she now hails from the eastern state of West Bengal. Being the daughter of a wildlife conservationist and travel writer shaped her significantly, and her love for the natural world began at a very young age. While she was growing up, holidays often meant accompanying her father to remote wilderness areas on project work and regularly trekking through the Himalayas. She started her career in tourism as a SCUBA divemaster at 19 while finishing her undergraduate studies in sociology. To delve further into the marine world, she worked on several research projects dealing with sharks on the west coast of India and marine mammal diversity in the Arabian Sea.
Over time, Faiza realized what she enjoyed most was sharing her love for the natural world with others. She managed a wildlife lodge in the foothills of the Himalayas for two years and has worked in the travel industry ever since, curating and guiding wildlife tours. Since 2019, she has guided in the trans-Himalayan region of Ladakh in northern India, searching for the highly elusive snow leopard. Faiza also leads tours in the tiger reserves of Central India and the rainforests of South India.
As a naturalist, Faiza enjoys learning about the trees and plants in every region she works in. She has also edited a photographic field guide about wildlife of South India. Coming from a background in sociology, Faiza takes great interest in how Indigenous communities coexist in wild spaces alongside wildlife, and she firmly believes that any sustainable tourism venture must directly benefit the communities that live there.
In her spare time, Faiza enjoys cooking and eating. She is very passionate about food and plans her personal trips around the cuisine and wildlife of the destinations she is interested in.