A selection of events, lectures, interviews, and publications in which I’ve been featured:
A message from Leon McCarron popped up on my phone. “Do you know anything about buying camels?” he asked.
For anyone else that might seem strange, but having spent two years living with Bedouin in Egypt, it didn’t really surprise me that someone would ask me that. “Well,” I replied, “I know a little but I can certainly ask my contacts in Egypt for more detail”.
Leon was writing an article for Adventure magazine about the process of buying camels and wanted a little extra information on general pricing and food to supplement his current knowledge. We also share an intention to own camels ourselves one day, so it was a fascinating conversation (although admittedly one of the most bizarre either of us has ever had on WhatsApp!)
Click here to read the article in full.
February 2022
Chapter in Travel Writing in an Age of Global Quarantine Edited by Gary Fisher & David Robinson.
“Bedouin Is a Place: Freya Stark’s Travel with Nomads”
Travel Writing in an Age of Global Quarantine is an anthology of travel accounts by a diverse range of writers and academics. Challenging conventional academic ‘authority’, each contributor writes, from memory during the covid-19 lockdown, about a place they have previously visited, ‘accompanied’ by an historical traveller who published an account of the same place.
February 2022
Chapter in The Moment Collectors
A new anthology of tales from the road by 20 motorcycle travellers, edited by Sam Manicom.
The Overland Event
September 5-7, 2021
In the absence of international travel due to restrictions, EmmaLucy has been discovering how riding a motorcycle can prompt unexpected opportunities and challenge our boundaries even when riding locally. She will talk about how these experiences have helped develop ‘Downward Exploration’, and will share for the first time footage from her new project documenting the live music, local culture, and beautiful vistas of the South West.
Armchair Adventure Festival
September 24-26, 2021
Downward Exploration: EmmaLucy will talk about the experiences of living in Sinai, her PhD on how Bedouin are represented by travel writers, and ‘Downward Exploration’. She suggests that by travelling differently and thinking more deeply about the cultures we visit, we can learn more about the places, the people, and ourselves. Prepare to be transported to Sinai through photos, videos, audio recordings, and storytelling!
The Globetrotters Club, London
June 12, 2021
In 2011 EmmaLucy visited South Sinai, Egypt, to carry out six weeks of research into a facet of the local Bedouin culture. Two years later EmmaLucy finally left, having been immersed in Bedouin language, food, and customs. EmmaLucy’s talk will share the excitement of this journey, discussing some of the challenges of living among the community, the wonders of desert life, and how the experience inspired further travel, as well as EmmaLucy’s current PhD research into the ethics of representing other cultures.
Watch the talk (delivered via Zoom) here.
Interview in Motorcycle Sports and Leisure Magazine
March 2021
Interviewed by Maja Kenney about travel, riding a motorcycle, and PhD research.
February 2021
Tough Girl Podcast interview
The Overland Event
September 3-6, 2020
EmmaLucy is excited to announce that she has been invited to return to the wonderful Overland Event in September 2020. She will talk about why taking on challenges as a new rider is important, share stories and lessons from the past year, and discuss what she will definitely do differently when preparing for future international travel!
May 2020
Article for Travel Writing World
A snapshot about crossing cultural boundaries as EmmaLucy visited a Bedouin village in Egypt in 2019.
The Overland Event
August 29 – September 1, 2019
While in Egypt conducting research, EmmaLucy motorcycled across part of the South Sinai Peninsula – with only two months’ riding experience, in 35 degrees, on an ancient dirt bike with a kick start. The journey was short, but extremely challenging. EmmaLucy will talk about why taking on challenges as a new rider is important, what she would do differently next time, and how she’s preparing for a longer journey across the Middle East in the winter.
Adventure Stories
April 16, 2019, Exeter
After witnessing misrepresentation of local culture whilst living for two years with the Tarrabin Bedouin in South Sinai, EmmaLucy was preparing to undertake a journey across the Middle East on a motorbike later in the year. Her talk explored how that journey came about and why it needed to be on two wheels!
Royal Geographical Society Microlectures
March 14, 2019
EmmaLucy presented a micro-lecture on the ancient ritual Dahiyya dance, based on her extensive research whilst living in Egypt.
EmmaLucy had no interest in motorcycles until she saw Steph Jeavons speak at the Adventure Travel Film Festival. Inspired by the opportunities for a woman to travel and connect with local culture in a different way, she faced her fears, took the basic CBT training, then six months later obtained her full license. Picking up a Triumph Street Scrambler the same day, she rode for six hours up to the Overland Event Winter Warmer the next morning.
Spurred on by the people and the journeys shared at the Winter Warmer, EmmaLucy decided that the following month, whilst in Egypt conducting research, she would ride across part of the South Sinai Peninsula – with only two months’ experience of riding, in 35 degrees, and on an ancient dirt bike with a temperamental kick start. The journey was short, but extremely challenging.