Maria Sakarias

Maria Sakarias is a board member and Global Education Program Manager at MTÜ Mondo, an Estonian NGO working in development cooperation, humanitarian aid, and Global Education. At the heart of Mondo’s work is a commitment to reducing global inequalities and supporting people – both locally and internationally – to live with greater dignity and equal opportunities. 
 
Maria holds a BA in French and Linguistics from the University of York (UK), a Research MA in Linguistics from Utrecht University (NL), and an Advanced MA in International Development from Radboud University (NL). Her interdisciplinary background has shaped a strong interest in how education can drive meaningful social change, particularly when it helps people connect their everyday lives to wider global realities. 
 
Before joining Mondo, Maria worked across NGOs, social enterprises, and EdTech organisations in Estonia, the Netherlands, and beyond, building experience in project management, training facilitation, and international partnership development. Along the way, she developed a deep appreciation for experiential and work-based learning as a bridge between formal education and active civic participation. 
 
At Mondo, she leads the strategic development of Global Education programming across formal, non-formal, and higher education settings, and maintains partnerships with universities, schools, ministries, and European networks. Her work centres on equipping learners and educators with the knowledge, skills, and motivation to engage critically with global challenges – and to see themselves as active participants in addressing them. 
 
Maria is a fluent communicator in Estonian, English, French, and Dutch, with working knowledge of Russian and Spanish – a reflection of the international environments she has navigated throughout her career. She is passionate about participatory methods, co-creation, and the kind of transformative learning that prepares young people not just for employment, but for engaged and responsible lives in a complex world.