Hello! My name is Ari and I’m a Nurse Practitioner, but I also own and run my own company called MedTreks International, an adventure travel business that provides adventure travel experiences and medical education for health professionals.
Although I work in the Emergency Department, my passion is designing and running adventure trips to incredible places in the world and creating community through these experiences.
My parents started a similar company in the 1980s, focusing more on cross-cultural experiences for doctors and nurses. After I became a Nurse and later a Nurse Practitioner, I realized that I wanted to continue my passion to travel and design trips that bring medical professionals together.
I began running medical trips to Kenya and then expanded to running all different styles of trips for health professionals: Medical Spanish programs, wellness retreats, adventure trips, wilderness medicine courses, global health seminars.
Being a female in the travel industry has been both challenging and inspiring. I have had the opportunity to meet many other incredible women who are working as project managers, guides, leaders, entrepreneurs – and I believe they are really helping to change the travel industry.
The travel industry is huge and sometimes complex. I’ve learned that it’s important to build a community of friends/colleagues who’re doing similar work, to help support one another along this journey.
I’ve been lucky to have been able to work with incredible women at different points of the travel planning process, whether it is booking a hotel and hiring a caterer or designing a retreat with another instructor; I feel that I’m constantly meeting amazing women who’re supportive and wanting to help empower each other in the business.
In travel, here’s how I believe we can better support women:
Sharing why women carry strengths for the travel industry and why it’s important to have our presence and our talent in the business. I also think that women can improve supporting other women by helping to mentor aspiring travel entrepreneurs or even hosting workshops/retreats for entrepreneurs who’re wanting to go into the business.
This month is a powerful reminder of the strong shoulders of women that my generation stands on today. We’re only here doing what we do because of the women who came before us, blazing this trail. I feel so incredibly blessed to walk this path of providing global experiences with other women, networking and building community. It’s also a reminder that we must continue to have a voice and share our skills and strengths as leaders, educators, healers and entrepreneurs. I’m lucky to be part of this global community and can’t wait to meet even more fantastic women who are changing and improving the travel industry!
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