From a Lawyer to a Mountain Nomad: Brown Gal Trekker is Marinel M. de Jesus, Esq. She is a former civil rights attorney in Washington, DC who practiced law for 15 years and discovered during that time her passion for mountain trekking. In 2017, she left her legal career and life in the U.S. completely to pursue a life of a global mountain nomad.

Marinel was born in the Philippines and is a first generation immigrant to the U.S. At the age of 13, she and her family moved to Seattle, WA from Manila, Philippines. She earned her dual Bachelor degree in American Ethnic Studies and Social Work and thereafter obtained her Juris Doctor and Masters in Social Work from the University of Washington in Seattle.

In 2016, Marinel founded the social enterprise, Peak Explorations, to inspire others to trek mountain trails globally while creating workforce equity and inclusion of women and indigenous communities in the trekking tourism industry worldwide. Brown Gal Trekker is a media entity that documents Brown Gal's travels and trekking journeys. It also aims to elevate the voices of women, indigenous communities and people of color vis a vis storytelling and through a critique of the outdoor and travel industries’ efforts towards Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. In 2021, Peak Explorations guided trips became incorporated within the Brown Gal Trekker as “Equity Global Treks” to serve as a more mission-based and transformational journeys for participants in the spirit of creating Workforce Equity within the trekking tourism industry.

In 2019, Marinel founded the non-profit, The Porter Voice Collective, which is a human rights focused media entity that utilizes all forms of media to amplify the voices of porters in the mountains of Peru, Nepal and Tanzania. PVC’s mission is to create workforce equity within the trekking tourism industry that would advance the worker rights and indigenous rights of porters.

To learn more about Brown Gal Trekker, check out VICE’s Second Act Mini-Documentary. Also, check out D.C. Prosecutor Leaves Job to Trek and her feature via She Explores' podcast, Never Too Late to Become a Mountain Nomad, Tough Girls Podcast and G.O. Podcast.

Marinel has been featured on ABC’s Tamron Hall Show, International House Hunters (Peru Episode), Atlas Obscura, Vox, RoadTrippers, Backpacker Magazine, Gear Junkie, and more. Brown Gal Trekker is a member of the Board of Directors (2020-23) and the Chair of JEDI Committee of the American Hiking Society. She is part of the Diversity Outdoors coalition that promotes diversity, equity and inclusion in the outdoor industry. She is currently a Brand Ambassador for Osprey and AKU Trekking Shoes and a former ambassador for Marmot (2019-2020) and Thru-Hike Syndicate (2018). Marinel is a member of the Media Heralds via the Transformational Travel Council.

ARTICLE PUBLICATIONS & CONTRIBUTIONS

Alpinist: No Room for Hate - Building a Community to Help End Asian & AAPI Invisibility in the Outdoor Industry

Alpinist: Fighting for Workforce Equity in Kilimanjaro