“Factors change and things happen beyond our control, working to accept this is making life and adventures a lot more relaxed and enjoyable.”
We’re all for pouring a brew with good folk. Especially when small talk turns big, sharing stories and listening in nice and close. To talk life, queer joy and finding their tribe, we caught up with Friend of Passenger and tricky to track down—we like that about her— Amelia Le Brun.
Hey Amelia, what have you been up to since we last caught up? Any notable trips?
"I genuinely don’t think I’ve stopped since we last spoke, I have been working back to back and I’ve been on some amazing work trips reminding me how lucky I am that I get to do this for a job.
"I spent the summer in France last year with my rescue dog Pip and my cat Annie (Aka Fat Cat) - it was an incredible month travelling around France, I hiked through Chamonix, the Pyrenees and then spent a week in Biarritz, which I completely fell in love with.
"Over the winter I was in Copenhagen and also visited the Amalfi Coast for the first time, which was another incredible experience. I adopted a new rescue dog in February which has been busy and a lot of fun! I was in Italy a lot in the spring working on one of my biggest shoots to date and cannot wait to share more of that! Right now I am currently sitting in my van in Sweden waiting for the rain to pass before I continue to head north."
“Doing what I love for work and travelling to so many incredible locations allows my everyday life and job to be an absolute joy.”
How have you been finding joy in the outdoors?
"Having a new rescue dog has been super exciting and really helped me appreciate the little moments of joy and seeing the outdoors as a new experience through Stella’s eyes. She is such a happy little dog despite her rough start in life, and as we road trip through Northern Europe, her continued excitement at the smallest things is so joyous.
"Doing what I love for work and travelling to so many incredible locations allows my everyday life and job to be an absolute joy. I am also working hard on letting go of things I can’t control, especially when it comes to travelling in an old van and working and enjoying the outdoors. Factors change and things happen beyond our control, working to accept this is making life and adventures a lot more relaxed and enjoyable."
Have you felt a shift in the accessibility and inclusivity of outdoor spaces?
"I’m seeing a lot of brands actively working to make their product and advertising a lot more inclusive, which is so nice to see. There are still outliers, brands that seem to be allergic to working with women, let alone the LGBTQ+ community which is disappointing to see these days, but judging by the backlash they regularly receive, it doesn’t go unnoticed. Naturally the ‘algorithm’ will only show you more and more of what you look at/want to see so it’s hard to know how things are really changing on an impartial basis if that makes sense?!"
“Talk is cheap, and it’s very easy to see through platitudes and empty promises.”
What do you think people and brands could be doing to make the outdoors a more inclusive space?
"Leading by example is undoubtedly the best way to go about establishing change. Talk is cheap, and it’s very easy to see through platitudes and empty promises. I have noticed that people, women especially, aren’t sitting back and accepting the huge underrepresentation from the brands as mentioned above which is very encouraging.
"For brands it’s simple, hire more people from the LGBTQ+ community, both for photographic/video work, and modelling work - the way for the outdoors to be more inclusive is to make them more inclusive, with straightforward action. The fine line to balance is hiring for the sake of demographics, which almost risks undoing the positive work already in progress."
Amelia's top Passenger picks...
Keep up with Amelia’s (@amslebrun) adventures via IG and have a read of Freedom In Escape: Roamers Collective for more on queer joy in the outdoors.
If you’re a content creator in the LGBTQ+ community and want to reach out, we’d love to hear from ya. Just send over a DM to @passengerclothing.
We’re still learning, listening and take full responsibility for our journey - if you have any Qs or just fancy a chat, please chuck an email over to info@passenger-clothing.com or drop us a DM.