Most conversations about women in tourism are focused on women as consumers. We need to create the platforms to speak on deeper issues, about women working in the tourism and hospitality industry and the inequities they face. We need to create the opportunities to elevate voices to find solutions to eliminate injustice. In this podcast episode, we have Marinel M. de Jesus, Esq. a changemaker who boldly advocates for workforce equity and inclusion of women and indigenous communities in the trekking tourism industry worldwide.
Marinel M. de Jesus, Esq.: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marineldejesus/
Brown Gal Trekker: https://www.browngaltrekker.com/
Marinel M. de Jesus, Esq. is a former civil rights lawyer from Washington, DC who turned her passion for hiking into a full-time endeavor as a social entrepreneur, solutions-focused journalist, and speaker. She is the founder of the award-winning media platform, Brown Gal Trekker, and mountain trekking enterprise, Equity Global Treks, both of which aim to elevate the status and roles of women and indigenous communities in the outdoor and travel industries. Marinel is a full-time global mountain nomad and travels to mountain destinations regularly to explore tourism initiatives that are community-led and/or focus on female leadership in the tourism industry. In 2019, she founded the non-profit human rights organization, The Porter Voice Collective, which aims to advocate for the human rights of porters in Peru, Nepal, and Tanzania and Workforce Equity Tourism as a form of sustainable tourism through the use of storytelling and all forms of media.
Key points covered in the episode:
1. What drove a highly successful career women with a lucrative career to be “married to the mountains?” and understanding her mantra “Make use of the power of permission” that guided her towards embracing a minimalist and simple life
2. The stereotypes and challenges faced by a women and person of color in a traditionally white, male space
3. The need to decolonise the tourism industry and giving the ownership and control of it back to the local community.
4. Why and how we can create platforms to elevate women’s voices in the tourism industry.
5. Lessons that she has learned on her entrepreneurial journey across the world.
This podcast is jointly presented by:
Dr. Nisha https://www.linkedin.com/in/nishatourismexpert , Co-founder of World Women Tourism https://www.worldwomentourism.com/
Zinal Doshi, https://www.linkedin.com/in/zinal-doshi Founder of The Flapper Life : http://theflapperlife.com