The short story is…

I grew up in a small town in Germany, right at the border of Switzerland and France, where people know about the lives of others—especially if you’re part of that one Chinese family living up the hill.

The story of us settling down there traces back to my German great-grandmother who first moved to China in 1939 and later returned, traumatized by the Cultural Revolution that remains a scar on the souls of my parents who left everything to build a new home.

Later, I went off to study, fell in love with Berlin—its club culture, chaos, and unfinishedness—and then with the mission of making business more beautiful, before landing here.

Ever since I can remember, I have been in the companionship of loving people, and yet, I’m no stranger to the sense of loneliness. Feeling other, alien, unable to speak my whole truth, while excited by the unexpected joys, clarity, and creative outbursts only alone-ness can offer you.

In creating community, transformational experiences, and safe spaces for intimate conversations over the past years, I was lucky to meet many people from different ages, backgrounds, and places, who—often without me prompting them—shared how much less alone they felt and how their need for connection and community was met.

Sensing this greater commonality of an experience of loneliness and seeing our world drifting apart made me curious about exploring more. So here we are.