Kiana Weltzien
Captain
Kiana's ocean adventures began in 2016 when she left her real estate career in Miami for a year of travel. She soon met a mentor and moved onto his boat, a replica Polynesian double-canoe, realizing this was her new way of life.
In 2018, Kiana acquired her own boat, Mara Noka, a modern Polynesian double-canoe. Despite her limited sailing knowledge, she navigated challenging passages, often sailing alone to avoid the responsibility of a crew. Her first year included tandem sailing with her mentor, but after her first solo Atlantic crossing in 2019, she sailed independently.
Kiana met Lærke in the Canary Islands, sparking the idea for the Women & the Wind (W&W) project. Post-Spanish COVID lockdown, she crossed the Atlantic to North Florida in late 2020, marking the start of a 14-month boatyard restoration of Mara Noka for the W&W North Atlantic crossing, her first voyage with a crew.
After the 2022 W&W North Atlantic crossing, Kiana sailed through Madeira, the Canaries, and Cape Verde, aiming for Brazil. She completed a 43-day solo crossing from Santiago to Ilhabela by the end of 2022. Currently in Paraty, Kiana focuses on her nonprofit, preparing to write a book about her travels, and finalizing the documentary.
Lærke Heilmann
First mate
Lærke, an illustrator, artist, surfer, and ocean conservationist, was raised in Denmark by a family of sailors, influencing her love for the sea and adventure. Based in Fuerteventura, Canary Islands, she works as Project Coordinator for the Clean Ocean Project mitigating plastic pollution.
Her work with the NGO exposed her to the severe impacts of plastic pollution. Meeting Kiana in the Canary Islands fueled her desire for adventure, leading to the inception of Women & the Wind (W&W), a female-led Atlantic journey to raise awareness about plastic pollution. Despite the pandemic and financial hurdles, Lærke sold her car and surfboard to join Kiana, enduring a year-long boatyard refit of Mara Noka.
Back in the Canary Islands, Lærke continues her NGO work and finalizing the documentary. She recently initiated a project to deliver used surfboards to a surf community in Cape Verde.
Alizé Jireh
Camerawoman
Alizé Jireh, a self-taught photographer and filmmaker from the Dominican Republic, specializes in conceptual art and documentary. Her short-format storytelling has taken her worldwide, capturing diverse environments and evoking emotion, connection, and self-reflection.
Though she had never sailed before, Alizé dreamed of it since her teenage years. When Kiana followed her on social media, Alizé visited her in St. Augustine, inspired by Kiana’s oceanic life. Six months later, Kiana invited her to join the North Atlantic crossing and document it. Despite her lack of sailing and feature-length film experience, Alizé eagerly accepted, driven by the challenge and her passion for storytelling.
Residing in the Midwest when not traveling, Alizé works as a freelance editor and photographer. Since the crossing in September 2022, her main focus has been producing the "Women & the Wind" documentary.