Radical imaginings and critical hope: sustaining progress in sexuality, gender, health and rights

This panel discussion and Q&A celebrates the publication of the 2nd edition of the Routledge Handbook on Sexuality, Gender, Health & Rights, which provides a global perspective on ongoing struggles for freedom, liberation and justice in relation to sex, gender and sexuality.

A selection of Australian and Aotearoa based Handbook contributors will provide brief provocations, engaging with a key issue from their chapter, to stimulate thought and debate on what sustains commitment to advancing and protecting social justice in their particular area of expertise, including sex tech, trans fertility, sexual citizenship, and emergent gender and sexuality identities.

The event is supported by the UNSW Community of Practice for Inclusive Research with Queer, Trans & people with variations of sex characteristics (Intersex people), or CoPQTI, and is made possible by funding from the UNSW Division of Societal Impact, Equity & Engagement. Please submit questions during registration for the panel to respond to in the Q&A session. This event is hybrid, with limited capacity for in-person attendance. Links to the live stream and event recordings will be sent to all who register.

Captions will be provided.

Detailed directions to the venue (including the accessible entrance) will be sent in the week of the event to anyone who has registered for in-person attendance.

Zoom link: https://unsw.zoom.us/j/82383905721

For 40% off print and e-book versions of the Routledge Handbook of Sexuality, Gender, Health and Rights when purchasing from Routledge, enter code CHRH at checkout. Valid until 15 April 2024.

Speakers

Chair

Christy Newman (they/them) is Professor of Health, Gender, and Sexuality at the Centre for Social Research in Health and Deputy Dean Research at UNSW Arts, Design & Architecture. They contribute expertise on LGBTQIA+ communities across many areas of health and social care, including sexual and reproductive health, digital health, mental health, dementia care, cancer prevention, and violence prevention.

Panel

Peter Aggleton (he/him) has a background in the social sciences as applied to well-being, education and health. He has worked on issues of gender, sexuality and sexual health for many years and is a senior adviser to UNFPA. He holds senior professorial positions at a number of universities including The Australian National University in Canberra, UNSW Sydney, and UCL in London. 

Professor Rob Cover (he/they) is Professor of Digital Communication at RMIT University and Co-Director of the RMIT Digital Ethnography Research Centre. His research focuses on gender and sexual diversity, identity and contemporary cultures, including screen and digital communication in the context of well- being and belonging.

Alex Ker (he/him) is a trans community advocate and doctoral candidate currently based at Te Herenga Waka– Victoria University of Wellington in Aotearoa New Zealand. Since 2018, Alex has worked as a research assistant and co- investigator on projects to improve reproductive and gender- affirming healthcare for transgender and non- binary communities.

Dr Sujith Kumar Prankumar (he/him) is a senior research associate at the Kirby Institute, UNSW Sydney. Sujith’s research concerns culture and difference, the social dynamics of health and illness and the ethics of care, with a current focus on gender, sexuality and health in Papua New Guinea, Australia and Singapore. 

Dr Zahra Stardust (she/her) is a sexuality researcher specialising in sexual media and sextech. Her book Indie Porn: Revolution, Regulation, Resistance (Duke University Press, 2024) explores the clash between indie porn producers, governments and big tech. She is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the ARC Centre for Automated Decision-Making and Society at QUT.