Stories from Encircle with Stacey Harkey

Today is Trans Day of Visibility! We see you, we support you, and we love you 🏳️‍⚧️. Check out another episode of Stories from Encircle and hear the experiences and expertise of our Trans and QBIPOC Friendship Circle facilitators Mitski Avalōx (she/her), Logan McKibbin (he/they), and Sky Melamed (he/him). Trans Friendship Circle is every Friday at 6:30pm at every Encircle! 🥰

To round out our celebration of Women's History Month, we're sharing this conversation between Dr. Leandra Hernandez (she/her) from Utah Valley University and Dr. Lisa Diamond (she/her) from the University of Utah, as they discuss Women's History, queer feminists we should know more about, and a discourse on the state of women's rights, accomplishments, and the fight for a better future.

Dr. Leandra H. Hernandez (Ph.D., Texas A&M University) enjoys teaching health communication, gender studies, and media studies courses. She utilizes Chicana feminist & qualitative approaches to explore Latina/o/x cultural health experiences, Latina/o/x journalism and media representations, and reproductive justice and gendered violence contexts. Her teaching philosophy is informed by social justice approaches, and she is passionate about mentoring undergraduate students through diverse and inclusive research projects.

Dr. Lisa M. Diamond's research focuses on sexuality, gender, and intimate relationships, and their implications for health and well-being over the life course. Her primary research areas include (1) fluidity in sexual and gender expression among women and men, (2) biological underpinnings of sexual desire and experience, (3) the impact of early-life adversity on social and sexual development, and (4) the implications of sexual well-being for physical and mental health.  In addressing these questions, she uses a diverse range of research methods, including longitudinal observation across multiple time spans, controlled laboratory experiments, and collection of biomarkers (such as oxytocin, cortisol, and markers of systemic inflammation).

In today's episode of Stories from Encircle, our founder and CEO Stephenie Larsen (she/her) sits down with a new member of the Encircle team, Stacey Jackson-Roberts (she/her), and they talk about the impact that Stacey has had leading the charge for better healthcare, legal protections, and acceptance for trans women.

Today is all about the unique intersection of Black identities with queer identities! We hear from Chris Amador (they/them), Jeannie Williams (she/her), Mimi Cole (she/her), and Stacey Harkey (he/him), as they talk about some heroes of theirs, some lessons about intersectionality, and their hopes for a brighter future for queer Black folks.

No Sides, Only Love. Encircle gives a home to youth and family programs, mental health services, and subsidized therapy for the LGBTQ+ community. Support our mission at encircletogether.org/give!

Join us for a short discussion with Encircle youth, Kiana (she/her), as she discusses with Camlyn Giddins (she/they) some of her favorite topics, including her journey, her exploration with her sexuality and the support she's received, along with some fun stories about martial arts, horse riding, and her time at Encircle.

A special collaborative podcast episode with The Queer Athlete Podcast. Today we celebrate National Women and Girls in Sports Day, and this year is the 50th anniversary of Title IX. Hear Emma Gee (she/her), Mina Margraf (she/her), and Mica Schoenrock (she/her) discuss their experiences as queer female athletes and their hopes for the future of sports.

This week, we're joined by Jordan Jackson (he/him) and Tayler Pace (he/him). Jordan and Tayler run LGBTQ.UT, an app that provides information about crisis and community resources, local events, and educational materials for the queer community. Hear their stories, what motivated them to involve themselves in the tech and resources sphere, and what their goals and hope are for the app.

And make sure to check out their website LGBTQ.UT and their Instagram page, @lgbtq.ut

Stories from Encircle presents... The Story OF Encircle! Learn more about what inspired Encircle, how we've grown, the lessons we've learned, and a little bit about where we're going as Encircle's CEO Stephenie Larsen (she/her) sits down with Encircle COO Jacob Dunford (he/him).

Join us for a short discussion with Encircle youth, El (she/they), as she discusses with Willow Webb (she/they) some of her favorite topics, including her journey, her exploration with gender and the support she's received, and of course, mushroom facts.

The first episode of our new series focused on sharing the stories of the young folks that come to Encircle: Becoming! In this episode, hear Bei's story of realizing and coming to understand their sexuality and gender identity, and some of the lessons they've learned along the way.