Maya

Maya Elaine Higa is an American Twitch streamer, YouTuber, conservationist, and founder of Alveus Sanctuary—a nonprofit exotic animal sanctuary and virtual education center based in Austin, Texas. Known online as Maya, she has built a unique career blending wildlife education with livestreaming, using her platform to foster awareness and support for conservation causes. Born May 24, 1998, in Northern California, Maya began streaming in 2018 while studying agricultural business at Cal Poly. A viral clip in 2019 featuring her pet hawk, Mango, launched her into the public eye, setting the stage for a career centered on animals, education, and purposeful content.

From the beginning, Maya stood out for her calm, informative style and heartfelt connection to animals. Her early streams showcased live interactions with her diverse menagerie—birds of prey, dogs, reptiles, and even a mustang—while offering accessible, science-based education to a growing online audience. In 2020, she launched Alveus Sanctuary, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to caring for non-releasable exotic animals and creating digital-first environmental education. The sanctuary quickly became the heart of Maya’s content, and her passionate community rallied behind its mission. A 21-hour charity stream in 2021 raised over $500,000, contributing to more than $1 million in total fundraising for Alveus to date.... Show More

Maya Elaine Higa is an American Twitch streamer, YouTuber, conservationist, and founder of Alveus Sanctuary—a nonprofit exotic animal sanctuary and virtual education center based in Austin, Texas. Known online as Maya, she has built a unique career blending wildlife education with livestreaming, using her platform to foster awareness and support for conservation causes. Born May 24, 1998, in Northern California, Maya began streaming in 2018 while studying agricultural business at Cal Poly. A viral clip in 2019 featuring her pet hawk, Mango, launched her into the public eye, setting the stage for a career centered on animals, education, and purposeful content.

From the beginning, Maya stood out for her calm, informative style and heartfelt connection to animals. Her early streams showcased live interactions with her diverse menagerie—birds of prey, dogs, reptiles, and even a mustang—while offering accessible, science-based education to a growing online audience. In 2020, she launched Alveus Sanctuary, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to caring for non-releasable exotic animals and creating digital-first environmental education. The sanctuary quickly became the heart of Maya’s content, and her passionate community rallied behind its mission. A 21-hour charity stream in 2021 raised over $500,000, contributing to more than $1 million in total fundraising for Alveus to date.

Conservation and Creator Collaborations

Maya’s presence in the streaming space bridges both the gaming and environmental worlds. She’s collaborated with high-profile creators like Ludwig, QTCinderella, and HasanAbi, and partnered with leading conservation groups including the American Eagle Foundation and Whale and Dolphin Conservation, for which she became an ambassador in 2023. She co-hosted the first Streamer Awards in 2022 and ran the well-known podcast Wine About It until July 2025, when she stepped back to concentrate fully on Alveus and her conservation work.

Content and Mission in 2025

Now with over a million YouTube subscribers and a broad audience across Twitch, Instagram, and TikTok, Maya continues to expand Alveus’s reach through educational content and live behind-the-scenes streams. Her appearance at TwitchCon EU 2025 included a panel on environmental content creation, reinforcing her role as a leading voice in sustainability-focused streaming. Whether showcasing animal rescues or documenting daily life on sanctuary grounds, her content centers on transparency, science communication, and meaningful storytelling.

Personal Ethos and Lifestyle

Living in a small house on the Alveus property, Maya leads a minimalist lifestyle consistent with her conservation values. While she’s kept much of her personal life private, she has openly shared aspects of her journey with her audience—from her public breakup with Mizkif in 2021 to her reflective return from controversy in 2022. Through all of it, Maya has remained grounded in her mission to make a tangible impact on animal welfare and environmental education.

With her community, “The Flock,” supporting every stream and initiative, Maya continues to inspire by showing how digital platforms can drive real-world change. Her influence extends far beyond entertainment, establishing her as a respected and enduring figure in the intersection of conservation and online media.