The multilingual and multi-faceted Maria Poonlertlarp was a successful model who caught the public eye by winning the Miss Universe Thailand title in 2017, and reaching the finals in the Miss Universe Pageant in the US. During the competition she cited an interest in combating issues of gender inequality and teenage pregnancy. Since being crowned, her focus has shifted towards environmental concerns and animal rights; with projects like WildAid and Yora Thailand under her belt. She co-founded SOS Earth in 2019 to create awareness on environment issues, and implement social media campaigns such as the Trash Me challenge, or clearing waste from Khlong Lad Prao in conjunction with the EU, and to create awareness around Thailand's latest Clean Air Act. She uses her widely followed Instagram account as a platform to advocate for various issues close to her heart, including LGBTQ+ rights, animal protection, cross cultural understanding, plant-based leather, chicken factory farming. Although not quite a vegan yet, she tries to cut out all animal products when possible. In addition, Maria volunteers to teach English at Duang Prateep Foundation, a non-profit organisation for the education of Thai students in urban poor areas.