What is intersex? What does it mean to be intersex? What other terms might people use and why? What does it mean to be intersex inclusive? How can your organisation be inclusive and respect the diversity of the population? What human rights actions are currently in progress? What is Intersex Awareness Day and why is it on 26 October?

Come and help us mark this important day in our calendar! These questions and more will be answered in this all-stars webinar bringing together Bonnie Hart, Cody Smith, Morgan Carpenter and Simone-Lisa Anderson. We will also be responding to current developments, including important announcements in the lead-up to Intersex Awareness Day.

Bonnie Hart is an intersex woman, peer worker, advocate and content expert. Bonnie has been instrumental in community development for the intersex community in Australia. Her current role is Prime Trauma-Truffle Harvester at Intersexyland: An upcycled fantasy-reality land where shameful pasts are transformed into powerful futures. Bonnie supports organisations and service providers devlop intersex inclusive practices through delivering training and policy review via the YellowTick initiative. Bonnie also a social science researcher who develops innovative models of psychosocial support for intersex people and their families.

Cody has been a Canberra based intersex educator and activist for the last eight years and joined IHRA as Senior Projects Officer in August. Starting off in grassroots community education, Cody has spent the last four years as Intersex Project Coordinator for A Gender Agenda. They’ve been involved in building organisational capacity, policy development, running peer support programs, as well as developing resources and training from a lived experience perspective. With a background in science communication and in library and information services, Cody brings a bright and sincere voice to the space and believes that visibility and conversation are the right way forward to improving the circumstances of people with innate variations of sex characteristics in Australia.

Morgan Carpenter is a bioethicist, executive director of Intersex Human Rights Australia, and creator of the intersex flag. He plays an active role in systemic advocacy on legislative, regulatory and clinical reform. He has acted as a consultant to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, World Health Organization, Australian Capital Territory and Victorian governments, and an advisory group member for the Australian Human Rights Commission, Australian Bureau of Statistics and New South Wales Health. He is a member of the Australasian Association of Bioethics and Health Law and the Public Health Association of Australia.

Simone-lisa is an accomplished educator who has facilitated learning from young people to adults in a wide range of formats from the pedagogy of science to classroom facilitation to intersex education. She is also a staunch intersex advocate, interacting with all levels of government, from government steering committees to MP discussions/advocacy and legislative change through to supporting other jurisdictions in legislative change. Currently, Simone-lisa is creating change through the Better Lives Project across several deliverables - educating midwives about intersex and pathways, a parent booklet and antenatal video introducing variations of sex characteristics and how to obtain lifelong support.