Maria Veneke Ylikomi

Col. Maria Veneke Ylikomi

SDGs Advocate, World Traveler and Goodwill Ambassador

Goodwill Ambassador, Global Citizen, Advocate for Peace, Human Rights and the Environment

The Honorable Maria Veneke began with Globcal International in 2013. She lives and works in Sweden where she is a writer, peace advocate and goodwill ambassador for Scandinavia and Sweden.

Bio and Professional Info

Maria Veneke Ylikomi works as a language consultant within the areas of proofreading, text editing and writing. She became a Kentucky Colonel after her work was recognized by the Governor of Kentucky in 2014.

Tibet, the Water Tower of Asia - Globcal International NewsGlobcal International's Goodwill Ambassador Maria Veneke Ylikomi had the great honour to interview Lobsang Sangay, or "Sikyong" as his Tibetan title is, during the president's visit in Sweden. The interview was made for the Swedish magazine Gränslöst, with the theme of human rights, democracy and tolerance. News about justice – for all.

Volunteer at an orphanage

Maria's time spent as a volunteer at an orphanage in war-torn Cambodia (Sunrise Children's Village) gave her new thoughts about what is really important in life. That is one of the circumstances that has led Maria to dedicate a big part of her time to the international non-profit organization Globcal International. As a Goodwill Ambassador, Maria is able to collaborate with other professional colleagues on an international initiative to communicate and promote humanitarian issues, environmental issues, human rights, children's & women's empowerment.

Jaguar, Tiger, Lion, Leopard

Together with the wildlife photographer Jan Fleischmann, Maria has written a book about the four big cats the jaguar, tiger, lion and leopard, available in the Swedish language. The book has been translated into English and was published by the British publishing house Austin Macauely Publishers in February 2019, with the title "Tracking the Panthera Family". Description of the book:

"Embark on a magnificent adventure in the trails of the big cat animals, all belonging to the Panthera family. With stunning photos, exciting field stories and informative factual texts, the photographer Jan Fleischmann and the factual writer Maria Veneke Ylikomi guide the readers to the large cats' territories; the tiger's jungles, the savannahs and bush forests where the lion and leopard are residing, and the rivers and wetlands where the mighty jaguar is roaming. We also meet the fifth member of the Panthera family, the elusive snow leopard, who is the master of the mountains in Central Asia. What's on the jaguar's menu? How does the tiger live? Who are the enemies of the lion? How to see the difference between a jaguar and a leopard? The answers are found in the book, where we also get acquainted with some of the scientists and nature guides who are fighting for the big threatened felines."

Environmental Peacebuilding & Interfaith Harmony

Maria is dedicated to find ways to unite for the environment and promote harmony between all people regardless of their faith.