Maria Thorell also works at the Biospere Reserve Lake Vänern Archipelago and Mount Kinnekulle where she has produced the EuroMAB2011 Conference. She also works as a teacher at Gothenburg University.

Before joining Stockholm Resilience Centre, Maria worked for more than five years at the County Administrative Board of Västra Götalands län, most recently with windpower development.

Prior to that she worked with nature reserve establishment and with a pilot project on participatory processes to increase biodiversity preservation.

Maria has worked as teacher in conservation biology at Gothenburg University where she also did her PhD. Her research interest is mainly in protected areas and the application of the biosphere reserve concept.

Maria did her PhD on small forest reserves and their surroundings in southern Sweden, the title of the thesis is Forest conservation strategy in southern Sweden: the role of small reserves and buffer zones.

Since 1997 she has contributed to the Man and the Biosphere Program (UNESCO) and the developement of biosphere reserves e.g. as national coordinator in 2004, producing the NordMAB Conference in 2004,  and for more than five years she was a member of the national MAB Committee.