Small introduction/presentation, job or activity, place of birth or country of origin, training or career, place of living

My name is Maria Opuni May. I am a Swiss entrepreneur, publisher, and former international model, founder of Kai Zen Models, Kai Zen Studio, and Kai Zen Mag, a luxury lifestyle magazine focused on conscious living, travel, culture, beauty, and sustainability. I also co-founded the Kai Zen Restaurant in Lausanne in 2007.

This year holds special meaning: Kai Zen Models celebrates its 20th anniversary, marking two decades of connecting talent with opportunity and supporting models at every stage of their careers.

I was born in Bawku, northern Ghana, to a Swiss mother and a Ghanaian father, and raised between Switzerland, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, and the United States, an upbringing that ignited mylifelong passion for travel and cultural exchange. As a model, I had the chance to live and work for extended periods in Cape Town, Hamburg, New York, London, Paris, and Los Angeles. Those years exposed me to different cultures, industries, and ways of seeing the world, and they continue to shape both my personal outlook and my professional projects today.

I now live near Lausanne, on the shores of Lake Geneva, with my husband, photographer David May, and our two sons, a place that feels, after all that movement, very much like home.

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Tell us about your place of residence, city or region, activity and if or what you like about your hometown?

I live in Paudex, a small village on the shores of Lake Geneva. What I love most about this region is the balance it offers, between nature and culture, between a sense of community and room to breathe. There is a quality of life here that I genuinely appreciate, and a chance for authentic connection, whether with the people around me or with the natural world just outside my door.

Much of my free time is spent outdoors. I play tennis regularly at Stade Lausanne Tennis Club in Vidy, often several times a week when the weather allows. I love hiking and Switzerland has an extraordinary variety of trails. One of my favorites with my children is the hike through the Gorges du Triège near Les Marécottes, which combines beautiful scenery with a real sense of adventure. I also often take long walks along the lake, both to stay active and to clear my mind. Whether it is a match on the court, a mountain trail, or a quiet walk by the water, being connected to nature is an important part of how I live and one of the things I value most about this corner of the world.

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Your must-see addresses near you? (restaurant, market, gallery, museum, not-to-be missed, intimate or secret address, etc.)‍

For dining, I would always recommend Myo SushiBar. As a lifelong vegetarian, I appreciate that they offer genuinely excellent options beyond the standard, and the team is consistently warm and welcoming.Their terrace in summer is particularly lovely.

The Olympic Museum is a place I return to often and never tire of. It also carries a personal significance, as one of my very first summer jobs at sixteen was welcoming groups there. Beyond the memories, I find the stories of athletes deeply inspiring. The discipline, dedication, and resilience required to reach the highest level of any sport is something I have tremendous admiration for.

For something more relaxed and authentic, Crêperie La Chandeleur has a charm that is hard to define but impossible to miss and it remains one of my favorite spots in Lausanne.

And whenever I have visitors from abroad, Le Deck is almost always on the itinerary. Perched above the Lavaux vineyards with sweeping views over Lake Geneva, it combines a vibrant atmosphere and contemporary design with one of the most spectacular panoramas in the region. It never fails to impress.

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Your favorite places on Earth?‍

An almost impossible question for someone who has spent much of their life travelling. I genuinely believe every destination has its own distinct beauty, and for me, travel has always been as much about the people you share a place with as the place itself.

That said, a few cities have left particularly lasting impressions. Rome, Seoul, and New York each captivate me for entirely different reasons. One for its history and sensuality, one for its energy and design, one for its sheer relentlessness and creativity. I have also been deeply moved by northern Thailand, especially Chiang Mai, with its culture, its pace, and a warmth of hospitality that is genuinely hard to match. The islands of the south are equally beautiful. And then there are the memories: Bali, Cape Town, the North and South Islands of New Zealand, Brisbane. I could go on. Of course, Ghana and Switzerland, my two countries of origin, hold places in my heart that no other destination can replicate.

What I love most is discovering a place slowly, on foot, at the rhythm of local life rather than as a tourist passing through. My children have inherited that curiosity and they track every country they visit on an app. Watching them discover the world with fresh eyes is one of the greatest pleasures of my life. There are still many places on my bucket list, and I find that quietly thrilling.

There are still many destinations on my bucket list, and that is part of the excitement. I never tire of the feeling that around the next corner, in the next city, or on the next journey, there is something new to learn, experience, and appreciate.‍

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Do you think it is important to travel and why?‍

YES! Travel is one of life's greatest teachers, and one of the most important lessons it has given me is that there are many different ways to live, think, and solve problems, and that rarely is there only one right answer. Experiencing that firsthand, indifferent cultures and contexts, makes you more open-minded, more adaptable, and ultimately more understanding of others.

Travel also builds gratitude in a way that is hard to replicate. Seeing how people live in very different circumstances around the world has made me appreciate the conveniences and opportunities I sometimes take for granted. It puts everyday frustrations into perspective. When I hear someone become exasperated over something minor, I often find myself thinking of how fortunate we are to be worrying about such things at all.

More than anything, travel expands your frame of reference. It pulls you out of your routine, lets you see your own life from a different angle, and sends you home with a deeper understanding of both the world and yourself. Every journey is an opportunity to learn and to grow, and I have never returned from one without feeling changed in some small but meaningful way.

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What do you think about the future of travel and what we (citizens) need to consider?

The future of travel will require us to be more mindful, and I say that as someone for whom travel is one of the greatest passions in life. I hope future generations will continue to have the opportunity to explore the world, but that also means being honest about the impact our journeys have on the environment and the communities we visit.

Because I travel frequently, I try to offset my footprint in other areas of my life. But beyond carbon calculations, I think the most important shift is one of mindset. The goal is not necessarily to stop travelling, but to travel with more intention and more respect. Respect for local cultures is essential. When we visit a new place, we are guests and we should arrive with curiosity and humility, not with the expectation that everything will conform to what we know. Some of the most rewarding travel experiences I have had came precisely from stepping outside my comfort zone and embracing a different way of doing things.

I hope the future of travel becomes less about accumulating destinations and more about creating genuine connections, supporting local economies, and leaving places a little better than we found them.‍

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What would you advise?

Travel with curiosity, humility, and an open mind. Do not just visit places, take the time to truly experience them. Walk through neighborhoods rather than rushing between landmarks. Talk to locals, try the food, learn a few words of the language, and allow yourself to be surprised. Some of my most treasured travel memories have come from completely unplanned moments: an unexpected conversation, a wrong turn that led somewhere beautiful, a meal shared with strangers.

Travel responsibly, too. Be conscious of your environmental impact, support local businesses wherever possible, and approach local customs and traditions with genuine respect. We are guests, and acting like one goes a long way.

The world is both bigger and smaller than we imagine, bigger in its extraordinary diversity, and smaller in the many threads that connect us across cultures and continents. If you have the opportunity to explore, take it. The perspective, the memories, and the connections you gain will stay with you far longer than any souvenir.

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As a woman, how do you judge the future of our land or our societies?‍

With both optimism and clear eyes. We are living through a period of profound transformation, with technology advancing at breathtaking speed, the world more interconnected than ever, and opportunities available to this generation that simply did not exist for those before us. At the same time, we face very real challenges: environmental urgency, growing inequality, social polarization, and the complex questions raised by artificial intelligence about the future of work and human connection.

What gives me genuine hope is people's capacity to adapt, innovate, and find common ground when we choose to. History has shown us, repeatedly, that humanity can rise toits challenges when we work together. As a woman and a mother, I am also particularly encouraged by the possibilities now open to young girls. There is still much progress to be made, but women today have more opportunities than ever before to lead, to build, and to shape the future of their communities.

I also believe that qualities increasingly recognized as essential to strong leadership, such as empathy, resilience, emotional intelligence, and the ability to collaborate, are ones that women have long been encouraged to develop. That is not a small thing. A more balanced, more inclusive society will need all of those qualities, and I am hopeful we are moving, however imperfectly, in that direction. Progress, to me, means measuring success not only in economic and technological terms, but in our capacity to care for one another and to leave abetter world for the generations that follow.

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How do you think you can contribute to it? Women who stand out to you?‍

I try to lead through example, in how I run my businesses, in how I show up as a mother, and through the editorial platform of Kai Zen Mag, which I use to amplify individuals and initiatives that inspire conscious, creative, and meaningful ways of living. Creating opportunities, fostering genuine dialogue, and building bridges between cultures and communities feel like the most authentic contributions I can make.

The women who inspire me most are often not the ones in the spotlight. My mother and my sisters have shaped who I am more profoundly than anyone. They taught me the value of hard work, resilience, kindness, and empathy through the way they lived, not just what they said.

I have immense admiration for women who dare to start their own businesses, knowing the landscape is rarely level. Women are often not encouraged to promote themselves as boldly or to put themselves forward with the same confidence as their male counterparts. As a result, many extraordinarily talented women work hard behind the scenes without receiving the recognition they deserve. That needs to change.

And I am deeply moved by women who support other women, who share their knowledge, open doors, offer encouragement, and genuinely celebrate the success of those around them rather than viewing it as competition. When women lift one another, the effect multiplies far beyond the individual. We build stronger businesses, stronger communities, and a stronger foundation for the generations of women coming after us.

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What would be your travel dream?‍

One dream that has been with me for some time is a safari in Namibia with my family. My sons are passionate about animals and wildlife, and the idea of experiencing Africa's landscapes and extraordinary natural world through their eyes feels like it would be truly magical. One of the quiet privileges of parenthood is witnessing your children experience wonder, and I can only imagine how extraordinary that particular wonder would be.

More broadly, my dream is simply to keep exploring, slowly, curiously, with the people I love.If I could, I would take several months to travel around the world without rushing, spending real time in each place rather than passing through. I am particularly drawn to destinations where I can meet local communities, learn about their traditions, and experience everyday life from the inside rather than the outside.

What excites me most is not any single destination, but the feeling I have come to know well over a lifetime of travel, that around the next corner, in the next city, on the next journey, there is always something new to discover, something that will shift my perspective or move me in a way I did not expect.

I hope I never lose that curiosity. It has given me more than I can measure.