Background
Penn was born and raised in Atlanta.
animator entrepreneur philanthropist
Penn was born and raised in Atlanta.
She started her company in 2008 at the age of 8. She spoke at the TEDTalk at TEDWomen 2013 in San Francisco, which was streamed live on TED.com. She has done 2 official TEDTalks and 1 TEDxTalk.
Penn is also an animator and artist, drawing cartoon characters from an early age.
She is the creator of an animated series called The Pollinators which focuses on the importance of bees and other pollinators. She premiered a clip of The Pollinators and another animated series called Malicious Dishes at TEDWomen 2013.
Penn has made herself known as a supporter and member of One Billion Rising and Girls, Incorporated. She also founded her own nonprofit organization, Maya"s Ideas 4 The Planet, in 2011.