Zest was born from our shared story. We are Ilaina and Ivan,
partners for more than thirteen years and parents of Maya and Alma. From a very young age, we have been driven by the desire to know ourselves deeply and to learn how to relate —with ourselves and with others— in a more conscious and loving way. This dual path of self-knowledge and exploration within our relationships has led us through many learnings, trainings, readings, retreats, and, above all, a sustained daily practice in our everyday lives.
All of this journey inspired us to create Zest, a space where we integrate who we are and what we have learned, and from which we accompany individuals and couples in their own processes of growth, connection, and transformation.
Ilaina - Life Coaching and Couples Therapy
My name is Ilaina. I live in Barcelona with my husband, our two daughters, and our dog. I’ve spent more than 25 years supporting individuals, teams, and organizations that want to create conscious change. Along the way, I have been a teacher, facilitator, and student; a social entrepreneur, executive director, and employee; a coach and a coachee.
My professional path began with a strong desire to change the world—to help more people live a dignified life, free from poverty and war.
At that time, the best way I found to do this was through volunteer work in international cooperation, followed by nearly a decade at Ashoka, a global organization that promotes a world in which every person is a changemaker. There, I had the privilege of directing youth programs in Argentina, leading international campaigns in the United States, and supporting the expansion of the Youth Social Entrepreneurship Program in El Salvador and Kenya.
In 2011, I co-founded the Amani Institute —an organization dedicated to training professionals who wanted to, or were already, working with purpose and social impact.
We opened branches in India, Kenya, and Brazil and developed projects in more than 20 countries. In my ten years as Executive Director, we supported around 10,000 people from 65 countries and collaborated with more than 250 organizations—from United Nations agencies to small local businesses—helping them innovate, strengthen their leadership, improve their teams and communication, and expand their positive impact in the world.
A core pillar of our methodology was the “Inner Journey,” where we invited professionals to look inward and understand that to change the world, we also need to transform ourselves.
This insight led me to train as a coach, couples therapist, and to complete a Master’s degree in Positive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, in addition to my specialization in mediation, conflict resolution, and my meditation practice. Along the way, I had the opportunity to write and share learnings from this path: I contributed as an author to the Brazilian anthology Negócios de Impacto Socioambiental no Brasil, published several articles in the Stanford Social Innovation Review, and wrote the book The New Reason to Work, where I explore how to build a career with purpose and social impact, aligned with one’s values and sense of meaning.
Before dedicating myself fully to coaching and couples therapy, I had the opportunity to work for one of the organizations I admire most: Proximity Designs in Myanmar, as Director of Talent Development.
Besides loving my work, I enjoy reading and reading to my daughters, having coffee with my husband, being near the sea, going camping, and savoring those small moments that make life magical: when the cinema goes dark just before the movie begins, when I warm my hands around a cup of tea, or when I see the first green leaf appear on a tree after winter. I celebrate life with enthusiasm, trusting that each person carries within them the wisdom to transform themselves and spark transformation around them.
Ivan - Couples Therapy
I grew up in a family of therapists and educators, where my parents viewed the therapeutic space not as a place to go only when something was wrong, but as something essential for personal growth.
Thanks to that, from a young age I had the opportunity to explore my experiences from new perspectives and access practical tools that improved my daily life. This process allowed me to make decisions that were more aligned with what I truly felt and thought, transforming the way I lived and related to others.
When my father passed away suddenly and unexpectedly, just after I turned eighteen, I came to deeply understand the value of all that learning. The ability to observe and reflect on myself helped me maintain a healthy life—mind, body, and soul—through the grieving process, recognizing that some experiences need time to be fully integrated. Without a paternal reference to lean on, I had to look inward, decide how to relate to that emptiness, and gradually build a new reference of my own.
This new state of awareness led me to create my own venture in the fields of education and public health when I was just twenty years old, dedicating more than fifteen years to those areas. Along the way, I had the joy of working with professionals I admired and building lasting, trusting relationships. I also pursued a specialization in Business Management at the University of Berkeley (California) and took part in several educational projects that further fueled my curiosity to keep learning.
In one of those projects, I met my wife, Ilaina, with whom I continued this path of self-knowledge and growth. Through retreats and my training in couples therapy, I came to understand that life together is a constant opportunity for learning and expanding consciousness-and that the natural conflicts that arise are, in fact, a pathway to personal transformation.
I learned that building a deep relationship—one rooted in intimacy and trust—requires creating a space where both people can show vulnerability without fear of judgment, and can illuminate the most valuable parts of one another. That kind of connection takes time, dedication, and above all, love. For over thirteen years, we have cultivated practices such as nonviolent communication and active listening as part of our daily life.
With the arrival of our daughters, new challenges and opportunities for growth emerged. As a father, I felt the need to acquire practical tools to support their feelings and needs, to guide them through moments of conflict, and to foster respectful and harmonious relationships.
Today, as I reflect on my journey, I realize that I have developed the ability to approach conflict with curiosity—seeking to understand it before judging it. I’ve learned to step back, observe, and reflect, and from that place transform patterns, ideas, and mental models. This process has allowed me to live a fulfilling life, in harmony with my decisions and with a deep sense of satisfaction. It is from this perspective and lived experience that I offer my support to those seeking guidance on their own path of personal and relational growth.