Episode 43: Living The Van Life: An Inside Look with Author & Activist Noami Grevemberg

Ever dreamed of living life on the road, with the world as your backyard? Well, our guest Noami Grevemberg has not just dreamt it, but she’s been living it every day since 2016! From adjusting to a Volkswagen Vanagon from a full-sized apartment, to the surprises that come with van life, Noami’s stories are both inspiring and informative. She generously shares practical tips for those who might be considering this adventurous lifestyle and shares her love for her tiny home on wheels that’s now an important part of her journey.

But, Noami’s story doesn’t stop at her personal adventures. She’s on a mission to make the van life community more inclusive, welcoming, and diverse. Noami shines a light on the challenges she faced as an interracial couple traveling the country, and how the lack of representation of marginalized communities led her to establish Diversify Van Life.

This initiative and her book, Living The Van Life, are key efforts in promoting diversity and representation within this lifestyle choice. So, join us for this enlightening conversation with Noami – it’s bound to make you rethink and appreciate the life of those who call the open road their home.

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Table of Contents

What We Discuss in Episode 43 of The Wayward Home Podcast:

Naomi shares how she got the idea to live in a van and her decision to reevaluate her life trajectory. She shares the initial fears and difficulties she faced when transitioning to van life back in 2016, including the lack of information and resources available at the time.
Noami talks about her experience attending van life gatherings and feeling detached and isolated due to the lack of representation of marginalized groups, including BIPOC and the queer community. This prompted her to start Diversify Van Life, a platform for often excluded groups to share their stories and build community.
Introduction to Noami’s book, “Living the Van Life” which provides an honest review of van life and offers tips on how to live in a van. Noami talks about the difficulties of writing a book for the first time and the added challenge of doing so while living in a van during a pandemic. She emphasizes the importance of being authentic and vulnerable in her book, and discusses the need to address the hard aspects of van life that are often romanticized.

About Noami Grevemberg:

Noami Grevemberg is a vanlife OG, avid outdoorist, remote entrepreneur, and dog mom, living on the road in her classic Volkswagen Vanagon since 2016. She’s the founder of the Diversify Vanlife community organization and author of the upcoming book, Living the Vanlife which will be out on July 4th, 2023, and is now available for pre-order wherever books are sold. Stay up to date on book signings and events on livingthevanlifebook.com. Learn more about Noami on Instagram at @irietoaurora and follow Diversify Vanlife @diversify.vanlife.