Francesca was born and raised in New Zealand. She has been actively involved in bird conservation and research most of her life, joining the Ornithological Society of New Zealand when she was just 12 years old. She has studied and worked on endangered bird conservation projects in a variety of places including New Zealand, Antarctica, Bolivia, and Ecuador.

As her knowledge in endangered species conservation was easily transferrable across species, her experience was perfect to lead the "Protection and Recovery of Mangrove Finch Population" Project. Francesca lived permanently in the Galapagos from 2009 - 2016 and initiated the head-starting component of the project. She now oversees the project on a part time basis from southern New Zealand travelling to the islands to lead the intensive field management.

In addition to the Mangrove Finch Project, Francesca is involved with other land bird projects on the islands.