Zaya

Recycle fashiondesigner

Zaya Guarani, also known as Zaya Ribeiro, is an Indigenous Brazilian model, activist and actor. Born and raised as a member of the Kamurape and Guarani Mbya ethnicities, Zaya made waves in the local fashion industry in 2024 when she appeared on the cover of Vogue Brazil. The casting was seen as a landmark moment for Indigenous representation globally. In addition to securing editorials for VogueMexico and British Vogue, and collaborations with Louis Vuitton, Moncler and Ugg, Guarani was awarded fashion influencer of the year at the Latin American Fashion Awards.

Growing up in Rondônia, near the Amazon’s Madeira River, Guarani’s native state forms part of the so-called ‘arc of deforestation,’ meaning her family was generationally displaced by illegal logging and mining activities. After her first Vogue cover, Guarani relocated to New York City, using her platform as a model to call for Indigenous rights, inclusion and climate justice. Guarani advises at The Slow Factory’s climate justice & human rights platform and works with the United Nations Spotlight Programme. In 2023, she starred in ‘Postcard from Earth’, a film directed by Darren Aronofsky; the following year she appeared in designer Willy Chavarria’s film ‘Safe from Harm’. In 2024, it was announced that she would co-star in ‘The Last of the Tribe’.

Zaya Guarani comes from a line of strong women, shamans, and spiritual guides on her mother’s side. Rooted in that legacy, she blends spiritual wisdom with political commitment, using her international platform to champion indigenous rights and climate justice.

At 16 she left Rondônia for Rio de Janeiro on a scholarship to finish high school. Soon after, designer and activist Dayana Molina discovered her, and together they launched the first Indigenous Creative Collective in Brazil—an initiative that brings authentic indigenous voices and representation into fashion across Brazil and Latin America.

Awarded at the Latin American Fashion Awards as fashion influencer of the year 2023, Zaya is dedicated to working on for brands and institutions that understand and support her political and climate activism, both inside and outside the fashion industry.

Zaya has contributed her voice and knowledge to fashion houses from within as well, consulting and speaking for both LVMH and Louis Vuitton in Paris.

Zaya made her acting debut in Darren Aronofsky’s Hollywood film Postcard from Earth, which screened at Sphere in Las Vegas. She will next appear opposite Ethan Hawke in the Amazon-set thriller The Last of the Tribe, written by Mark Bailey (Downfall; The Volcano) and produced by Fernando Meirelles (Academy Award–nominated for City of God) and Oscar-winning producer Ed Saxon (Silence of the Lambs; Adaptation).

As a model, Zaya recently joined a star-studded cast in Moncler’s latest campaign, “An Invitation To Dream,” curated by Jefferson Hack and shot by Jack Davison. She appeared on the cover of Vogue Brazil’s June/July 2024 issue, photographed by Mar + Vin, and was featured in the March 2024 issue of British Vogue, shot by Rafael Pavarotti.

Based in New York City, Zaya is represented worldwide by CAA and continues to work as a model, actress, activist, and speaker.