She draws from a unique combination of high-intensity academic environments (UChicago AB’12; University of Cambridge, MPhil '18) with years of international and domestic experience in clinical, therapeutic and educational settings across the private and public service sectors. Zulma uses her expertise and passion for research and wellness to help others on their journey of achieving mind-body wellness and self-actualization.
She is currently working on developing a scalable and adaptable personalized wellness solution through her venture, Life Stages. Her vision is to redefine and innovate the way the world thinks about overall health and well-being; outdoor adventure; and individual human potential by re-iteratively informing direct service, health research and, ultimately, global health policy.
Zulma continues her health and wellness consultant, facilitator, and research work, and has recently added to her skills reportoire HRL AI-training. She sits on the board of the UChicago Alumni Club - Bay Area and is part of the Latinas in the Boardroom National Steering Committee. In her free-time, Zulma enjoys outdoor sports, producing photography and documentary projects, and exploring the world.
Clinical Mental & Behavioral Health
Over 2.5 years of community-based mental health experience as a 24/5 crisis clinician for youth and family in the Portland tri-county metro area. Zulma worked with primarily Latinx and lower SES populations utilizing a strengths-based approach and trauma-informed lens to help them reach clinical stability. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she saw the stark surge in needs coupled with few effective solutions and started designing a health model to help as many people as possible achieve wellness.
Organizational Leadership
Zulma brings years of organizational leadership experience from the public service, NGO, and private business sector. She understands the importance of community-based partnerships and initiatives; benchmarking and improving systems; culture-creation; and strategic vision to ensure organizational goals are worked towards collaboratively, respectfully, and harmoniously.
Outdoor Health & Psychology Research
Zulma brings over 7 years of outdoor education and psychology research expertise coupled with her own relation to health and personal development through outdoor and psychology-based approaches. She is a strong advocate for the outdoors and its potential for human wellness and development.
Outdoor Experiential Education
Zulma has over 15 years of experience in experiential education across the U.S, Latin America, the UK, and Oceania— allowing her to work with diverse populations across cultures, ideologies, needs, and lived-experiences. Her educational work has intersected with health, wellness, nature, and research— honing her educational design and implementation skills through in-person, online, and hybrid program and curriculum development. She centers a human-centered approach with strong systems-thinking to achieve immediate and long-term outcomes.
"Zulma is a true visionary, with a rare gift for bringing ideas to life. She's an adaptable strategist, effortlessly navigating through challenges as they arise. But what really sets her apart is her kindness and humility—always ready to connect with others in a deeply personal and compassionate way. I feel privileged to call her a colleague and friend."
Javier Omar Meléndez-Vega
LCSW at Eutierra Therapy
“I’m not new to this type of instruction, and or any of the themes that were discussed in our workshop, but it was really nice to have a more structured discussion with like-minded individuals, and to share and discuss things that maybe I’ve had trouble with or that I think I can improve on. I really liked the merch we were given– the pamphlets have been helpful in my everyday life since I’ve done the workshop, and I think I will continue to share and use the resources I was given.”
- Life Stages' Forest Bathing & Mindfulness Hike Participant
“...thank you for your outstanding work on the platform. Your consistent high-quality output has been exemplary…”
Thank you so much ZY for your work in the world, it is so important and needed and I loved the way you held space in the group.
- Life Stages' Forest Bathing & Mindfulness Hike Participant
" Zulma is a visionary in the field of mental health and wellness. Her exceptional leadership skills and ethical approach to problem-solving make her an outstanding professional. She continually inspires those around her with her dedication and commitment to making a global positive impact."
-AIexander Perez
Tech and Communications Director, Life Stages
" Zulma is one of our star contributors…"
Being able to do a leadership / mental health workshop out in nature is a dream come true! Zulma is an amazing facilitator and I really appreciated that she customized the workshop to our group's needs. I really loved the emotion wheel handout, having that as a visual was a great touch!
- Skate Like a Girl Employee Wellness Cohort Member
Wonderful information on a blossoming topic. The slides received following the session were also very helpful and appreciated. Thank you!
-Stress Workshop Attendee
Loved this session over lunch. I particularly was having a stressful day and listening to Zulma explain the different ways we can calm down our nervous system, and sharing this time with other Latinas whom may be experiencing similar stressors was priceless.
-Stress Workshop Attendee
Zulma offers consulting services in NGO & business management, community-oriented health programming and initiatives, team-building, curriculum-building and facilitation, and individual leadership coaching.
She also offers mentorship opportunities for other female, Latinx, and/or queer professionals.