Jessica van Dop DeJesus

Jessica van Dop DeJesus is an award-winning travel and food journalist and content creator. In 2006, she left active duty military service and moved to Brussels to pursue her MBA. She spent most of her post-collegiate years living and working abroad, starting with a military tour in Okinawa, Japan, spending six years in Belgium (with a year in Germany in between), and moving back to Washington, D.C. She is the founder of The Dining Traveler, an online publication that tells stories of food, travel, dining, and culinary personalities. Her freelance writing has appeared in publications such as Afar, Travel + Leisure, Eating Well, and Lonely Planet, among others. ​​One of Jessica’s goals is to create content to uplift the voices of the hardworking people in the hospitality industry, especially women, veterans, and underrepresented communities.

• 10+ years of experience as a food and travel writer
• 10+ years of experience working with the U.S. Marine Corps
• Member of the year (2021) at the International Association of Culinary Professionals
• Member of the board of directors for the Marine Corps Toys for Tots Foundation
• Advisory board/media partner for The National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture
• Member of the communications committee for the Les Dames d‘Escoffier
• Active volunteer at World Central Kitchen, Friends of Puerto Rico
• Mentor and facilitator at Bunker Labs (Veteran Entrepreneurship)
• Received a master's degree in management and business administration from Boston University
• Received a bachelor's degree in Latin America studies from the University at Albany, SUNY