ZI was founded in 2017 by Lauren Zelek, a curious American traveler and entrepreneur who was bitten by the travel bug at a young age. At twelve years old her family journeyed across the world to live in Japan, where she became enamored by the hospitable people, deep culture, and rich history. It was this experience, and the many others along her travels in Asia, that formed a deep and gradual appreciation for understanding the cultural differences between the East and West, as well as an acute awareness to responsibly interact with diverse destinations and host populations.